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THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 









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Norwood, Mass., U.S.A. 



©CI.A207320 


A 




IS THERE A SANTA CLAUS ? 




[This question addressed to The Sun, New York , received this reply.~^ 

W E take pleasure in answering at once and thus prominently the 
communication below , expressing at the same time our great gratification 
that its faithful author is numbered among the friends of The Sun: — 

Dear Editor : I am 8 years old. 

Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. 

Papa says , “ If you see it in The Sun it's so.” 

Please tell me the truth ; is there a Santa Claus ? 

Virginia O' Hanlon. 

Virginia , your little friends are wrong. They have been afflicted by 
the scepticism of a sceptical age. They do not believe except they see. 
They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little 
minds. All minds , Virginia , whether they be men’s or children’ s y are 
little. In this great universe of ours man is a mere insect , an ant y in his 
intellect , as compared with the boundless world about him , as measured by 
the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge. 

Tes y Virginia , there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as 
love and generosity and devotion exist , and you know that they abound 
and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas l how dreary 
would be the world if there were no Santa Claus ! It would be as 
dreary as if there were no Virginias. There would be no childlike faith 
then y no poetry , no romance , to make tolerable this existence. We should 

V 


vi 


IS THERE A SANTA CLAUS? 


have no enjoyment , except in sense and sight. The eternal light with 
which childhood Jills the world would be extinguished. 

Not believe in Santa Claus ! Tou might as well not believe in 
fairies. Tou might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chim- 
neys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus , but even if they did not see 
Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove ? Nobody sees Santa 
Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real 
things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did 
you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn f Of course not , but thafs no 
proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the 
wonders that are unseen and unseeable in the world. 

Tou may tear apart the baby's rattle and see what makes the noise 
inside , but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strong- 
est man , nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever 
lived , could tear apart. Only faith , fancy , poetry , love , romance , can 
push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and 
glory beyond. Is it all real ? Ah, Virginia , in all this world there is 
nothing else real and abiding. 

No Santa Claus ! Thank God! he lives , and he lives forever. 
A thousand years from now , Virginia , nay, ten times ten thousand years 
from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood. 

FRANK P. CHURCH. 



CONTENTS 


Is there a Santa Claus ? . 

An Editorial by the late Frank P. Church in the New York Sun. 

Christmas Greens .... 

Adapted from Some Curiosities of Popular Customs by William S. Walsh. 

I saw Three Ships come Sailing In ..... 

A Kentish Version of an old English Christmas Carol. 

The Angels and the Shepherds 

The Gospel Story as in the Children’s Series of the Modern Reader’s Bible, 
edited by R. G. Moulton. 

While Shepherds Watched 

The famous Christmas hymn written in about 1700 and attributed to Nahum 
Tate. 

The Wise Men from the East 

The Gospel Story as in the Children’s Series of the Modern Reader’s Bible, 
edited by R. G. Moulton. 

Strooiavond in Holland 

Adapted from Holland by Beatrix Jungman in the Peeps at Many Lands Series, 
with one paragraph simplified from Servia and the Servians by Chedo 
Mijatovich. 

How St. Nicholas came to Volendam 

From the volume on Holland by Beatrix Jungman in the Peeps at Many Lands 
Series. 

Keeping Christmas in the Old Way 

From an entertaining old pamphlet published in 1740 entitled “ Round about 
Our Coal Fire, or Christmas Entertainments,” quoted in Christmas: Its 
Origin and Associations by W. F. Dawson. 

As Joseph was A-walking 

An Old English Christmas Carol known as The Cherry-tree Carol. In many 
versions another stanza said to be of later origin is added. 


CONTENTS 


viii 

PAGE 

The “ Jule-Nissen ” and Blowing in the Yule 21 

From The Old Town by Jacob A. Riis, copyright by The Macmillan Company, 

1909. 

Christmas Eve in Merry England 23 

From Marmion by Sir Walter Scott. 

When Christmas was not Merry 25 

Compiled from Christmas : Its Origin and Associations by W. F. Dawson, and 
from general sources. 

Going Home for Christmas 28 

From Old Christmas at Bracebridge Hall by Washington Irving. 

God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen 31 

An Old English Carol. 

The Date of Russia’s Christmastide 33 

Compiled from general sources, and in part from Russia by L. Edna Walter 
in the Peeps at Many Lands Series. 

St. Barbara’s Grain 37 

Adapted from an unsigned article in Macmillan's Magazine and from creole 
folk-lore. 

Before the Paling of the Stars 38 

By Christina Rossetti. 

A Midnight Mass in France 39 

Adapted from an article in Macmillan's Magazine with added details drawn 
from an article in The Century by Mme. Th. Bentzon. 

The Christchild and the Pine Tree 42 

A weaving together of bits of folk-lore drawn chiefly from The Child and Child- 
hood in Folk-thought by Alexander F. Chamberlain. 

A Birthday Gift 44 

Part of a hymn for children by Christina Rossetti. 

The Christmas Fire in Servia 45 

Adapted from Servia and the Servians by Chedo Mijatovich. 

The Day of the Little God .... 

From Servia and the Servians by Chedo Mijatovich. 


47 


CONTENTS 


IX 


Nature Folk-lore of Christmastide 

Compiled from several sources, including The Old Town by Jacob A. Riis and 
magazine articles. 


PAGE 

50 


Good King Wenceslas 53 

An Old English Carol in the version by John Mason Neale. 

A Mexican “Mystery” seen by Bayard Taylor 54 

From Eldorado by Bayard Taylor. 

Breaking the Pinate 57 

Collated from Mexico , the Wonderland of the South by W. E. Carson, copyright 
by The Macmillan Company, 1909. 

Christmas upon a Greenland Iceberg 59 

Collated from Christmas : Its Origin and Associations by W. F. Dawson, and 
The Great White North by Helen S. Wright. 

Luther’s Christmas Carol for Children 61 

Translator unknown. 

The Good Night in Spain 63 

Adapted from the account by Ferdinand Caballero, translated by Katharine Lee 
Bates. 


A Christmas Tree in Japan 66 

From Letters from fapan by Mary Crawford Fraser, copyright by The Mac- 
millan Company, 1899. 

From Far Away 72 

A Christmas Carol by William Morris. 

Lordings, Listen to our Lay 73 

A fragment of the earliest existing carol ; sung in the thirteenth century. 

Where the Christmas Toys come From 74 

Compiled from general sources, including In Toyland, an article in The Royal 
Magazine, copyright by C. Arthur Pearson, Ltd. 

The Making of a Christmas Doll 76 

The material of this article also has been drawn from The Royal Magazine by 
permission of its publishers, C. Arthur Pearson, Ltd. 

Irina’s Day on the Estates 79 

Adapted from Russia by L. Edna Walter in the Peeps at Many Lands 
Series. 


X 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 

A Visit from St. Nicholas 83 

By Clement C. Moore. 

The Cratchits’ Christmas Dinner 85 

From A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. 

After the Christmas Dinner ......... 88 

From The Old Town by Jacob A. Riis, copyright by The Macmillan Company, 

1909. 

Hang up the Baby’s Stocking 89 

Author unknown. 

A German Christmas 90 

Collated from Home Life in Germany by Mrs. Alfred Sidgwick, Music Study 
in Germany by Amy Fay, and Elizabeth and Her German Garden. 

Crowded Out 95 

By Rosalie M. Jonas. 

An English “Adoration” 96 

Adapted from The Children's Book of Art by Miss A. E. Conway and Sir 
Martin Conway. 

The Children’s Own Saint 99 

Based on legends chiefly drawn from Curiosities of Popular Customs by W. S. 

Walsh. 

The Befana Fair in Rome 102 

From Ave Roma Immortalis by F. Marion Crawford, copyright by The Mac- 
millan Company, 1898. 

The Golden Carol 104 

An Old English Epiphany Carol. 

Babouscka 105 

By Carolyn S. Bailey. Copyright by the Milton Bradley Company. Reprinted 
by permission from For the Children's Hour. 

The Three Kings 107 

Adapted by permission from The Memoirs of Mistral , copyright by the Baker 
and Taylor Company, 1907 . 

Christmas Peace no 

From The Little City of Hope by F. Marion Crawford, copyright by The Mac- 
millan Company, 1907. 


PLATES IN COLORS 


The Annunciation .... Dante Gabriel Rossetti . Frontispiece 

PAGE 

The Nativity Botticelli . . . Facing 4 

Shepherds and Shepherd Boy 20^ 

In a Christmas Market on the Neva 36 / 

The Yule Sheaf 52 

Nuremberg Where the Toys are Made 72 

Roumanian Boys in a Religious Procession 80 

An English “ Adoration ” 96 * 

ILLUSTRATIONS IN BLACK AND WHITE 

The Shepherds Adoring . . . Ghirlandajo . . . . . 8 v 

The Adoration of the Magi . . Bemadino . . . . . 12 v 

The Adoration of the King . . Veronese 16 

Holy Night ..... C. Muller 24 

A Christmas Gift on the Way to Christmas Dinner 28 

The Holy Night .... Correggio 32 

The Bells Blashfield 40 

The Triumph of the Innocents . Hunt 44 

Bethlehem . . . Hofmann 48 

xi 


xii 


ILLUSTRATIONS IN BLACK AND WHITE 


The Christmas Tree Market in New York 

Heads of the Christ Child from Raphael’s Paintings 

The Holy Family with the Shepherds .... Titian 

Making Glass and Tinsel Ornaments for Christmas Trees 

Doll-making 

Wig-making 

A Christmas Tree at the Immigration Station, New York 
“ We joined hands and danced around the tree ” 

Dressing Dolls in Germany for American Christmas Trees . 

An American Christmas Tree 

The Adoration of the Magi Memling 

The Adoration of the Shepherds Bouguereau 


PAGE^ 

56 
60 
64 
68 
76 
78 
84 v 
88 7 
92 

100 V 
104 v 
108 * 


COMPILER’S NOTE 

Wherever it has been possible, the material used has been quoted in the 
exact words of the writer. In some cases omissions have been made of sen- 
tences which would be unintelligible because that part of the original book to 
which they refer is not herein included. In a very few cases where the books 
quoted were not written for children, the selections have been condensed and 
the language simplified. It is hoped that injustice has been done to none. 





/ 








THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF 
CHRISTMAS 


Christmas Greens 

It is hard for you who have never felt the lack of heat and 
light to know what the long dark winter must have meant 
to the men of long ago who first kept the midwinter feast. 
Many of them really believed that as the days grew shorter 
and shorter, and the nights long and cold, there was danger 
that the sun might go out altogether and the whole world die 
in the darkness. When, late in December, the days began to 
lengthen, and they saw that the sun was coming back to bring 
again the flowers and the summer heat, they fancied that a 
new sun had been born. So then for gladness they kept a 
feast which naturally in later years was changed into a festival 
in honor of the birth of Christ, “ the sun of righteousness.” 

With the feast itself some other of their old customs have 
been handed down to us, and among them is that of bringing 
into the house in midwinter the boughs of Christmas green. 
For these far-away folk believed that wood-spirits — you know 
them as brownies, fairies, and elves — were living in the forests 
outside, and were so sorry to think of them shivering under 
the snow-laden trees and in damp icy caves, that they used to 
place in the corners of their houses great branches of hemlock 
and balsam fir, that “ the good little people ” might creep into 


2 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


the sort of shelters they loved and be warm. And as the heat 
of the fire brought out the sweet smell of the fir, it seemed 
to them like a “ thank you ” from their friends of the summer 
woods. Thus they, first of all men, felt the wish to give which 
is the heart of the Christmas spirit. And soon they began 
to hang little gifts for their unseen guest upon the green 
boughs, and to make them bright with the berries of holly 
and ash. After that it may be that some night hunter, crouch- 
ing in the underbrush, looked up to the stars, and felt that 
his tree was incomplete without twinkling lights. However 
that may be, the custom of trimming the house with ever- 
greens, holly, and lights at Christmas time is an old, old one. 

I saw Three Ships come sailing in 

I saw three ships come sailing in, 

On Christmas day, on Christmas day ; 

I saw three ships come sailing in, 

On Christmas day in the morning. 

And what was in those ships all three, 

On Christmas day, on Christmas day? 

And what was in those ships all three, 

On Christmas day in the morning? 

The Virgin Mary and Christ were there, 

On Christmas day, on Christmas day; 

The Virgin Mary and Christ were there, 

On Christmas day in the morning. 


I SAW THREE SHIPS 


3 


Pray, whither sailed those ships all three, 

On Christmas day, on Christmas day? 

Pray, whither sailed those ships all three, 

On Christmas day in the morning? 

O they sailed into Bethlehem, 

On Christmas day, on Christmas day; 

O they sailed into Bethlehem, 

On Christmas day in the morning. 

And all the bells on earth shall ring, 

On Christmas day, on Christmas day; 

And all the bells on earth shall ring, 

On Christmas day in the morning. 

And all the Angels in Heaven shall sing, 

On Christmas day, on Christmas day; 

And all the Angels in Heaven shall sing, 

On Christmas day in the morning. 

And all the souls on earth shall sing, 

On Christmas day, on Christmas day; 

And all the souls on earth shall sing, 

On Christmas day in the morning. 

Then let us all rejoice amain, 

On Christmas day, on Christmas day; 

Then let us all rejoice amain, 

On Christmas day in the morning. 


4 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


The Angels and the Shepherds 

Now in the days of Herod, King of Judea, the angel 
Gabriel was sent from God unto a city in Galilee named 
Nazareth, unto a virgin whose name was Mary, to whom he 
said : Hail, thou that art highly favored ! the Lord is with 
thee ! blessed art thou among women ! But she was greatly 
troubled by his greeting and wondered what such words could 
mean. Fear not, Mary ! for thou hast found favor with God, 
he said, and went on to tell her of the Son who should be 
hers, and whom she was to call Jesus. He shall be great, 
she was told, and shall be called the Son of the Most High ; 
and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his 
father David; and he shall reign over the house of Jacob 
forever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. 

Now it came to pass there went out a decree from Caesar 
Augustus, that all the world should be enrolled. And all went 
to enroll themselves, every one to his own city. And Joseph 
also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into 
Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because 
he was of the house of the family of David ; to enroll himself 
with Mary. And it came to pass, while they were there she 
brought forth her firstborn son ; and she wrapped him in 
swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger, because there 
was no room for them in the inn. 

And there were shepherds in the same country abiding in 
the field, and keeping watch by night over their flock. And 
an angel of the Lord stood by them, and the glory of the 










THE ANGELS AND THE SHEPHERDS 5 

Lord shone round about them : and they were sore afraid. 
And the angel said unto them, Be not afraid; for behold I 
bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all 
the people: for there is born to you this day in the city of 
David, a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord. And this is the 
sign unto you ; ye shall find a babe wrapped in swaddling 
clothes, and lying in a manger. And suddenly there was 
with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, 
and saying: 

Glory to God in the highest, 

And on earth peace 

Among men in whom he is well pleased. 

And it came to pass, when the angels went away from 
them into heaven, the shepherds said one to another, Let us 
now go even unto Bethlehem, and see this thing that is come 
to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto us. And 
they came with haste, and found both Mary and Joseph, and 
the babe lying in the manger. And when they saw it they 
made known concerning the saying which was spoken to them 
about this child. And all that heard it wondered at the things 
which were spoken unto them by the shepherds. But Mary 
kept all these sayings, pondering them in her heart. And 
the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all 
the things that they had heard and seen, even as it was spoken 
unto them. 

And when eight days were fulfilled his name was called 
JESUS. 


6 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


While Shepherds Watched 

While shepherds watch’d their flocks by night, 
All seated on the ground, 

The Angel of the Lord came down, 

And glory shone around. 

“ Fear not,” said he (for mighty dread 
Had seized their troubled mind); 

“ Glad tidings of great joy I bring 
To you and all mankind. 

“To you in David’s town this day 
Is born of David’s line 

The Saviour, who is Christ the Lord; 

And this shall be the sign: 

“The heavenly Babe you there shall find 
To human view display’d, 

All meanly wrapt in swathing-bands ; 

And in a manger laid.” 

Thus spake the seraph; and forthwith 
Appear’d a shining throng 

Of angels praising God, and thus 
Address’d their joyful song: 

“All glory be to God on high, 

And to the earth be peace; 

Good-will henceforth from heaven to men 
Begin, and never cease ! ” 


THE WISE MEN FROM THE EAST 


7 


The Wise Men from the East 

Now when Jesus was born, behold, Wise men from the 
east came to Jerusalem, saying, Where is he that is born 
King of the Jews? for we saw his star in the east, and are 
come to worship him. And when Herod the king heard it, 
he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And gathering 
together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he 
inquired of them where the Christ should be born. And they 
said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judea: for thus it is written 
by the prophet: And thou Bethlehem , land of Judah , art in 
no wise least among the princes of Judah : for out of thee 
shall come forth a governor , which shall be shepherd of my 
people Israel. Then Herod privily called the Wise men, and 
learned of them carefully what time the star appeared. And 
he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search out 
carefully concerning the young child ; and when ye have found 
him, bring me word that I also may come and worship him. 
And they, having heard the king, went their way; and lo, the 
star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it 
came and stood over where the young child was. And when 
they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. 
And they came into the house and saw the young child with 
Mary his mother; and they fell down and worshipped him; 
and opening their treasures they offered unto him gifts, gold 
and frankincense and myrrh. And being warned of God in a 
dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed 
into their own country another way. 


8 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


Now when they were departed, behold an angel of the 
Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise and take 
the young child and his mother and flee into Egypt, and be 
thou there until I tell thee: for Herod will seek the young 
child to destroy him. And he arose and took the young 
child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt ; and 
was there until the death of Herod. Then Herod, when he 
saw that he was mocked of the Wise men was exceeding 
wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the male children that were 
in Bethlehem, and in all the borders thereof, from two years 
old and under, according to the time which he had carefully 
learned of the Wise men. Then was fulfilled that which was 
spoken by Jeremiah the prophet, saying: A voice was heard 
in Ramah , weeping and great mourning, Rachel weeping for 
her children; and she w&uld not be comforted, because they 
are not. 

But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord 
appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, saying, Arise and 
take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of 
Israel: for they are dead that sought the young child’s life. 
And he arose and took the young child and his mother, and 
came into the land of Israel. But when he heard that Arche- 
laus was reigning over Judea in the room of his father Herod, 
he was afraid to go thither; and being warned of God in a 
dream, he withdrew into the parts of Galilee, and came and 
dwelt in a city called Nazareth: that it might be fulfilled 
which was spoken by the prophets, that he should be called 
a Nazarene. 



THE SHEPHERDS ADORING 




















































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































































STROOIAVOND IN HOLLAND 


9 


Strooiavond in Holland 

A Dutch boy does not have to wait until December 25 
for the great gift-day of the year. He is one of those who 
look for the gift-bringing saint on the eve of his own day 
which falls on December 6. For days beforehand the shops 
have been filled with toys and gaily trimmed, and on the 
evening of December 5 St. Nicholas is supposed by the little 
ones to make choice of the special treasure intended for little 
Dutch Jan or Martje. Indeed, it is one of the childrens 
treats to go out on that night to see the shops; and in the 
doorway of many of them stands a gorgeously clad likeness 
of the saint. 

At home the children in turn are visited by the saint ; in 
he walks carrying a big sackful of candies, oranges, apples, 
and so forth, which he scatters on the floor. Indeed, the Eve 
of St. Nicholas is called in Holland Strooiavond \ which means 
“strewing evening.” This idea of a strewing evening crops 
up curiously often as one reads of the various customs con- 
nected with the December holidays the world over. In 
southern France the Provencal women strew wheat on the 
surface of shallow dishes of water, planting St. Barbara’s 
grain; in Mexico the children try to break with a long stick 
a bag or jug swung high above their heads, scattering the 
contents at last all over the floor. 

In some parts of Servia there is found among the Christ 
mas customs one which is probably the remnant of an early 
rite from which all of these “strewing evenings” come. In 


IO 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


that country, after the Christmas fire has been started with 
due ceremonies, the mother of the family brings in a bundle 
of straw which has been made ready early in the day. All the 
young children arrange themselves behind her in a row. She 
then starts walking slowly about the hall, and all the adjoining 
rooms, throwing on the floor handfuls of straw, and at the 
same time imitating the hens sounds, “ Kock . . . kock . . . 
kock ; ” while all the children, representing the hen’s little 
chickens, merrily follow shouting, “ Peeyoo ! . . . peeyoo! . . . 
peeyoo ! ” The floor well strewn with straw, and the little folk 
in breathless heaps upon it, the oldest man of the family throws 
a few walnuts in every corner of the hall. After this a large 
pot, or a small wooden box, is filled with wheat and placed 
a little higher than a man’s head in the east corner of the hall. 
In the middle of the wheat is fixed a tall candle of yellow 
wax. The father of the family then reverently lights the 
candle, and, folding his arms on his breast, he prays, while all 
who are present stand silently behind him, asking God to 
bless the family with health and happiness, to bless the fields 
with good harvests, the beehives with plenty of honey, the 
sheep with many lambs, the cows with rich creamy milk, and 
so on. When he finishes his prayer, he bows deeply before 
the burning candle, and all those standing behind him do the 
same. He then turns toward them and says, “ May God 
hear our prayer, and may He grant us all health ! ” to which 
they answer, “ God grant it. Amen ! ” 

In Holland the very little children believe that while they 
are busy gathering up the saints goodies, or else in the 


STROOIAVOND IN HOLLAND 


ii 


night, he hides away the presents meant for them all over the 
house. Before they go to bed they place their largest shoes — 
wooden sabots, such as you see in almost every picture of 
Dutch children — in the chimney place, where in the morning 
they find them stuffed with fruit, nuts, and sweets. There are 
no lie-a-beds in Holland on St. Nicholas’ morning. There is 
a glorious game of “ seek-and-find ” going on in every house 
where there are children. Piet takes down one of the shining 
copper saucepans hanging beside the chimney place and finds 
curled up inside it the many-petti coated doll which of course 
he hands over to a delighted little sister, who has somewhere 
discovered his box of gaily painted leaden soldiers. There are 
plenty of hiding holes in an old Dutch house; thick oak 
beams support the walls and roofs and make wide ledges upon 
which Rupert may find a packet containing two flat silver 
buttons which once belonged to his great-grandfather. He is 
the oldest son, beginning to be particular about his striped 
waistcoats and the tight fit of his blue or red coat. He will 
be immensely proud to wear, as every other man in the old village 
does, two silver buttons at the waist of his baggy trousers. 
In the parts of Holland where the new fashions have not 
spoiled the old, silver buttons are to the men what such coral 
necklaces as Rupert’s sister wears are to the women. These 
buttons are always as big as the men can afford, and some- 
times are like saucers; the little boys, even the tiniest ones, 
are dressed exactly after the pattern of their fathers, but their 
two flat buttons are smaller, about as large as fifty-cent pieces, 
and stamped with some design, the favorite one being a ship. 


12 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


When all the gifts have been hunted out (down to a pair 
of skates with long curved tips for a boy so little that you 
would think St. Nicholas must have made a mistake if you 
did not know that Dutch children learn to skate almost as early 
as you learn to walk), the children are ready for the season’s 
other special treat, the gingerbread cakes. Delicately spiced 
gingerbread is made into many fantastic shapes, but every 
one, young or old, receives a gingerbread doll. Figures of 
men are given to the women folk, and of women in ruffles and 
straight skirts to the men. It is interesting to see how exactly 
like these gingerbread figures are in outline to those in early 
Dutch paintings. The models from which they are patterned 
frequently date from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. 

H ow St. Nicholas Came to Volendam 

One winter I was staying with my husband at the 
little fishing village of Volendam, and we wished that 
the little Volendamers, who are all very poor, should for 
once have a splendid St. Nicholas. A French artist, who 
was there at the same time, was of our opinion, and we 
were equally supported by our host Spaander and his wife 
and their family of blooming daughters. In the wooden 
hotel there is a “coffee-room,” long and low, of really vast 
proportions. In the summer-time half of it forms the draw- 
ing-room. At the farther end of this apartment is a small 
stage, with wings. On this occasion (thanks to Spaander) 
the whole of it was covered in spotless white, tables were 























































































































































































































































•• 




































HOW ST. NICHOLAS CAME TO VOLENDAM 13 

erected, and upon their surface were arranged about a 
thousand toys and as many oranges and cakes. A white 
throne was placed for St. Nicholas, whose part was taken 
by the Frenchman. He wore a long white woollen robe 
falling over a purple silk underdress, a cape of costly old 
yellow brocade, and a gorgeous jewelled mitre, and he 
was made venerable by long white hair and beard. The 
dress of the black slave, whose part was taken by my 
husband, was equally correct and effective — a long tight- 
fitting garment of green velvet, showing a white robe 
underneath ; an orange silk turban was wound round the 
black locks of a disguising wig and lit up his cork-black 
face. So much for the preparations, completed with con- 
siderable trouble and a great deal of amusement. 

My husband painted a large poster, on which was set 
forth a notice to all the children of Volendam that at 6.30 
a boat would land upon the quay, bearing St. Nicholas 
and his faithful slave laden with gifts. One may easily 
imagine the joy and delight of these poor fisher-children, 
into whose uneventful lives what English children call a 
treat hardly ever enters. They crowded about the an- 
nouncement, and read that St. Nicholas would come 
laden with gifts. Who can say what wild, beautiful hopes 
filled their hearts ? Before five o’clock the youngsters 
began to assemble. The quay was crowded with them, 
so was the narrow road leading from the quay to the 
hotel. The parents also were there, quite as excited and 
almost as credulous as their children. Indeed, all Volen- 


14 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


dam turned out to welcome the saint. Rain began to 
fall; but, although it soaked their poor clothes, it seemed 
to have no damping effect upon their spirits, all afire as 
they were with expectation. Meanwhile, the saint and his 
slave rowed out to their boat. It was now almost dark, 
but in the faint light one could still distinguish the fish- 
ing-boats which always crowd the harbor, their tall masts 
and sails dimly defined against the gray sky, and their 
narrow flags gently flapping in the rain. At one point 
there was an opening between the boats, a glimmering 
waterway, where those who were in the secret expected 
the boat to appear. The time passed slowly. It was 
seven o’clock; and every one was very wet. Still, all Volen- 
dam was full of cheerful good humor. 

At length a blaze of bright light far out on the water 
revealed the saint — a venerable figure standing in the 
boat, crosier in hand, evidently blessing the expectant crowd. 
In a few moments the boat reached the landing-place. 
With blare of trumpets, and by the light of the torches, 
a procession was formed. How radiant were the faces illu- 
mined by the flickering glow! Soon the warm, well-lighted 
cafe was reached. The saint sat on his throne, and his good 
slave rapidly distributed presents to the little ones, safely 
housed from the inclement weather ! Alas ! they were 
very wet; but, as not one of the seven hundred coughed 
during the distribution, it may be concluded that the young 
Volendamers do not easily take cold. Their surroundings 
are so damp that they are almost amphibious. 


HOW ST. NICHOLAS CAME TO VOLENDAM 


IS 

Every face beamed with happiness. The genial St. 
Nicholas and his hard-worked slave; the Spaander family 
all helping vigorously; the three fine, tall Volendamers, 
who, in their yellow scarves of office, kept order so gently 
and gaily; down to the very youngest child, — all the faces 
were sweet and patient, and aglow with the pleasure either 
of giving or receiving. 

The crowd of children looked plump and healthy, 
and although many garments were much patched, there 
were no rags; the poorest seemed to be well cared for 
and comfortable. 

Seven hundred of them were made happy with toys 
and fruit ; but there was no scrambling or pushing, nothing 
but happy expectation, and then still more happy satisfac- 
tion. All too soon it was over; the last child clattered 
down the long room with its precious armful. 

Afterwards we heard from the schoolteachers and the 
children’s parents that most of them believed firmly that 
it was the real saint descended from heaven who had laid 
his hands on their heads in benediction as they received 
their presents from the black slave. 




— Beatrix Jungman. 


16 THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 

Keeping Christmas in the Old Way 

There is an amusing account of how Christmas used 
to be observed in England in the time of George II, in a 
little book called “ Round about our Coal Fire, or Christmas 
Entertainments/’ published in 1740. The author begins: — 

“ First acknowledging the sacredness of the Holy Time 
of Christmas , I proceed to set forth the Rejoicings which 
are generally made at the great Festival. 

“You must understand, good People, that the manner of 
celebrating this great Course of Holydays is vastly different 
now to what it was in former days : There was once upon 
a time Hospitality in the land ; an English Gentleman at 
the opening of the great Day, had all his Tenants and Neigh- 
bours enter’d his Hall by Day-break, the strong Beer was 
broach’d, and the Black Jacks went plentifully about with 
Toast, Sugar, Nutmeg, and good Cheshire Cheese; the Rooms 
were embower’d with Holly, Ivy, Cypress, Bays, Laurel, and 
Misselto, and a bouncing Christmas Log in the Chimney 
glowing like the cheeks of a country Milk-maid; then was 
the pewter as bright as Clarinda, and every bit of Brass as 
polished as the most refined Gentleman; the Servants were 
then running here and there, with merry Hearts and jolly 
Countenances; every one was busy welcoming of Guests, 
and look’d as smug as new licked Puppies; the Lasses as 
blithe and buxom as the maids in good Queen Bess's Days, 
when they eat Sir-Loins of Roast Beef for Breakfast ; Peg 
would scuttle about to make Toast for John , while Tom run 








































































































\ 










V 



































































































































































KEEPING CHRISTMAS IN THE OLD WAY 


17 


harum scarum to draw a Jug of Ale for Margery : Gaffer 
Spriggins was bid thrice welcome by the ’Squire, and Gooddy 
Goose did not fail of a smacking Buss from his Worship while 
his Son and Heir did the Honours of the House: in a word, 
the Spirit of Generosity ran thro’ the whole House. 

“In these Times all the Spits were sparkling, the Hackin 
(a great sausage) must be boiled by Day-break, or else two 
young Men took the Maiden (the cook) by the Arms, and 
run her round the Market-place, till she was ashamed of 
her Laziness. And what was worse than this, she must not 
play with the Young Fellows that Day, but stand Neuter, like 
a Girl doing penance in a Winding-sheet at a Church-door. 

“ But now let us enquire a little farther, to arrive at the 
Sense of the Thing; this great Festival was in former 
Times kept with so much Freedom and Openess of Heart, 
that every one in the Country where a Gentleman resided, 
possessed at least a Day of Pleasure in the Christmas 
Holydays; the Tables were all spread from the first to the 
last, the Sir-loins of Beef, the Minc’d Pies, the Plum-Por- 
ridge, the Capons, Turkeys, Geese, and Plum-puddings, were 
all brought upon the board ; and all those who had sharp 
stomachs and sharp Knives eat heartily and were welcome, 
which gave rise to the Proverb — 

Merry in the Hall , when Beards wag all. 

******** 

“ A merry Gentleman of my Acquaintance desires I will 
insert, that the old Folks in the Days of yore kept open 
House at Christmas out of Interest; for then, says he, they 


T s THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 

receive the greatest part of their rent in Kind; such as 
Wheat, Barley or Malt, Oxen, Calves, Sheep, Swine, Tur- 
keys, Capon, Geese, and such like; and they not having 
Room enough to preserve their Cattle or Poultry, nor Mar- 
kets to sell off the Overplus, they were obliged to use them 
in their own Houses ; and by treating the People of the coun- 
try, gained credit amongst them, and riveted the Minds and 
Goodwill of their Neighbours so firmly in them that no one 
durst venture to oppose them. The ’Squires Will was done 
whatever came on it; for if he happened to ask a Neighbour 
what it was a Clock, they returned with a low Scrape, it was 
what your Worship pleases. 

“The Dancing and Singing of the Benchers in the great 
Inns of the Court in Christmas , is in some sort founded 
upon Interest; for they hold, as I am informed, some Privi- 
ledge by Dancing about the Fire in the middle of their Hall, 
and singing the Song of Round about our Coal Fire , &c. 

“ This time of the year being cold and frosty, generally 
speaking, or when Jack-Frost commonly takes us by the 
Nose, the Diversions are within Doors, either in Exercise 
or by the Fire-side. 

“ Country-Dancing is one of the chief Exercises. . . . 

“Then comes Mumming or Masquerading, when the 
’Squire’s Wardrobe is ransacked for Dresses of all Kinds, 
and the coal-hole searched around, or corks burnt to black 
the Faces of the Fair, or make Deputy-Mustaches, and every 
one in the Family except the ’Squire himself must be trans- 
formed from what they were. . . . 


KEEPING CHRISTMAS IN THE OLD WAY 


19 


“ Or else there is a match at Blind-Man s-Buff, and then 
it is lawful to set anything in the way for Folks to tumble 
over. . . . 

“ As for Puss in the Corner , that is a very harmless Sport, 
and one may romp at it as much as one will. . . . 

“ The next game to this is Questions and Commands , when 
the Commander may oblige his Subject to answer any law- 
ful Question, and make the same obey him instantly, under 
the penalty of being smutted, or paying such Forfeit as may 
be laid on the Aggressor; but the Forfeits being generally 
fixed at some certain Price, as a Shilling, Half a Crown, &c., 
so every one knowing what to do if they should be too stub- 
born to submit, making themselves easy at discretion. 

“ As for the game of Hoop and Hide , the Parties have the 
Liberty of hiding where they will, in any part of the House; 
and if they happen to be caught the Dispute ends in Kissing, 
&c. 

“ Most of the Diversions are Cards and Dice, but they are 
seldom set on foot, unless a Lawyer is at hand, to breed some 
dispute for him to decide, or at least to have some Party in. 

“And now I come to another Entertainment frequently 
used, which is of the Story-telling Order, viz. of Hobgoblins, 
Witches, Conjurors, Ghosts, Fairies, and such like common 
Disturbers.” 



20 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


As Joseph was a-walking 

As Joseph was a-walking, 

He heard an angel sing, 

“This shall be the birth-night 
Of Christ our heavenly king. 

“ His birth-bed shall be neither 
In housen nor in hall, 

Nor in the place of paradise, 

But in the oxen’s stall. 

“ He neither shall be rocked 
In silver nor in gold, 

But in the wooden manger 
That lieth in the mould. 

“He neither shall be washen 
With white wine nor with red, 
But with the fair spring water 
That on you shall be shed. 

“ He neither shall be clothed 
In purple nor in pall, 

But in the fair white linen 
That usen babies all.” 

As Joseph was a-walking, 

Thus did the angels sing, 

And Mary’s son at midnight 
Was born to be our King. 









THE “JULE-NISSEN” AND BLOWING IN THE YULE 


21 


The “ Jule-Nissen ” and Blowing in the Yule 

I do not know how the forty years I have been away 
have dealt with “ Jule-nissen,” the Christmas elf of my child- 
hood. He was pretty old then, gray and bent, and there were 
signs that his time was nearly over. So it may be that 
they have laid him away. I shall find out when I go over 
there next time. When I was a boy we never sat down 
to our Christmas Eve dinner until a bowl of rice and milk 
had been taken up to the attic, where he lived with the mar- 
ten and its young and kept an eye upon the house — saw 
that everything ran smoothly. I never met him myself, but 
I know the house-cat must have done so. No doubt they 
were well acquainted; for when in the morning I went in 
for the bowl, there it was, quite dry and licked clean, and the 
cat purring in the corner. So, being there all night, he must 
have seen and likely talked with him. . . . The Nisse was of 
the family, as you see, very much of it, and certainly not 
to be classed with the cattle. Yet they were his special concern ; 
he kept them quiet and saw to it, when the stableman for- 
got, that they were properly bedded and cleaned and fed. He 
was very well known to the hands about the farm, and they 
said that he looked just like a little old man, all in gray and 
with a pointed red nightcap and long gray beard. He was always 
civilly treated, as he surely deserved to be, but Christmas 
was his great holiday, when he became part of it, indeed, and 
was made much of. So, for that matter, was everything that 
lived under the husbandman’s roof, or within reach of it. 


22 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


Blowing in the Yule from the grim old tower that had 
stood eight hundred years against the blasts of the North 
Sea was one of the customs of the Old Town that abide, 
that I know. At sun-up, while yet the people were at break- 
fast, the town band climbed the many steep ladders to the 
top of the tower, and up there, in fair weather or foul, — and 
sometimes it blew great guns from the wintry sea, — they 
played four old hymns, one to each corner of the compass, 
so that no one was forgotten. They always began with 
Luther’s sturdy challenge, “ A Mighty Fortress is Our God,” 
while down below we listened devoutly. There was some- 
thing both weird and beautiful about those far-away strains 
in the early morning light of the northern winter, something 
that was not of earth and that suggested to my child’s im- 
agination the angel’s song on far Judean hills. Even now, 
after all these years, the memory of it does that. 



CHRISTMAS EVE IN MERRY ENGLAND 


23 


Christmas Eve in Merry England 

On Christmas Eve the bells were rung; 
On Christmas Eve the mass was sung; 
That only night in all the year, 

Saw the stoled priest the chalice rear. 
The damsel donned her kirtle sheen ; 

The hall was dressed with holly green; 
Forth to the wood did merry-men go, 

To gather in the mistletoe. 

Then open’d wide the baron’s hall 
To vassal, tenant, serf, and all; 

Power laid his rod of rule aside 
And Ceremony doff’d his pride. 

The heir, with roses in his shoes, 

That night might village partner choose ; 

The Lord, underogating, share 

The vulgar game of “ post and pair.” 

All hail’d, with uncontroll’d delight, 

And general voice, the happy night, 

That to the cottage, as the crown, 
Brought tidings of salvation down. 

The fire, with well-dried logs supplied, 
Went roaring up the chimney wide; 

The huge hall table’s oaken face, 
Scrubb’d till it shone, the day to grace, 
Bore then upon its massive board 
• No mark to part the squire and lord; 


24 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


Then was brought in the lusty brawn, 

By old blue-coated serving man ; 

Then the grim boar’s head frown’d on high, 
Crested with bays and rosemary. 

Well can the green-garb’d ranger tell, 

How, when, and where, the monster fell ; 
What dogs before his death he tore, 

And all the baiting of the boar. 

The wassel round, in good brown bowls, 
Garnish’d with ribbons, blithely trowls; 
There the huge sirloin reek’d ; hard by 
Plum-porridge stood, and Christmas pie; 

Nor fail’d old Scotland to produce, 

At such high tide her savory goose. 

Then came the merry maskers in, 

And carols roar’d with blithesome din ; 

If unmelodious was the song, 

It was a hearty note, and strong. 

Who lists may in their mumming see 
Traces of ancient mystery; 

White shirts supplied the masquerade, 

And smutted cheeks the visors made; 

But, O ! what maskers, richly dight, 

Can boast of bosoms half so light! 

England was merry England, when 
Old Christmas brought his sports again. 













WHEN CHRISTMAS WAS NOT MERRY 


25 


When Christmas was not Merry 

Christmas was not always" Merry Christmas ” in old Eng- 
land, for at one time a strong effort was made to do away 
with the holiday entirely, after some of the older ways 
of celebrating the season had become too boisterous for 
decent God-fearing folk. “At this season,” says old Dr. 
Stubbs, “all the wild-heads of the parish flocking together 
choose them a grand captain of Mischief, whom they crown 
with great solemnity and the title of Lord of Misrule, who 
chooseth as many as he will to guard his noble person. Then 
every one of these men he dresseth in liveries of green, of 
yellow, or other light color; and as though they were not 
gaudy enough, they bedeck themselves with scarves, ribbons, 
laces, and jewels. This done they tie about either leg 
twenty or forty bells, with rich handkerchiefs on their heads, 
and sometimes laid across their shoulders and necks. . . . 

Then march this heathenish company to the church, their 
pipes piping, their drums thundering, their bells jingling, 
their handkerchiefs fluttering about their heads like madmen, 
their hobby horses, dragoons, and other monsters skirmishing 
among the throng. And in this sort they go to church 
though minister be at prayer or preaching, — dancing and 
singing with such a confused noise that no man can hear 
his own voice.” “ My Lord of Misrule’s badges ” were given 
to those who contributed money to pay the expense of this 
wild fooling ; those who refused were sometimes ducked in 
the cow pond, he adds. It is admitted that these abuses were 


26 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


quite as bad as he described, and that they were among the 
chief reasons why, in the seventeenth century, Cromwell tried to 
put down the great old holiday. His Puritan government ordered 
that the shops were to be opened, that markets were to be held, 
that all the work of the world should go on as if there had 
never been carols sung or chimes set ringing “ on Christmas 
Day in the morning.” Instead of merry chimes, people heard 
a crier’s harsh-sounding bell and his monotonous voice 
telling every one “ No Christmas ! No Christmas ! ” 

In Scotland about the same time bakers were ordered to 
stop baking Yule cakes, women were ordered to spin in open 
sight on Yule day, farm laborers were told to yoke their 
ploughs. In both countries the masks, or Christmas plays, 
which had been so popular in the houses of rich nobles, were 
absolutely forbidden ; and if one were given, those who merely 
looked on might be fined and the actors whipped. 

But the people would not have their holiday taken away. 
Shops might open, but few would come to buy. In Canterbury 
on one Christmas Day the townspeople asked the tradesmen to 
close their shops. The tradesmen feared the law’s penalties, 
so refused. In the riot that followed the mob broke the shop 
windows, scattered the goods, and roughly handled the shop- 
keepers. 

In London even Christmas decorations were forbidden, but 
when the Lord Mayor sent a man to take down some holiday 
greens from one of the houses, the saucy London ’prentice-boys 
swarmed out with sticks and stones and sent him flying. Then 
came on horseback, fat and lordly, even the great Lord Mayor 


WHEN CHRISTMAS WAS NOT MERRY 27 

himself, who thought his dignity would overawe the unruly 
boys. But they only laughed and shouted until his horse took 
fright and ran away — and perhaps he was glad to be let off so 
easily. Even where the people dared not openly fight the new 
laws, they did not obey them more than they could help. Spin- 
ning-wheels were idle because there was no flax, and ploughs 
were “ gone to be mended ” on Christmas Day in many an 
English village until after the death of Cromwell, when the 
holiday came to its own again in “ merrie England.” 

The same dislike for the festival of Christmas, with its 
drinking, dancing, and stage plays, came over to the New World 
with the Puritans. Only a year after the landing at Plymouth 
Governor Bradford called his men out to work, “on ye day 
called Christmas Day,” as on other days. But certain young 
men, who had just come over in the little ship Fortune , held 
back and said it went against their consciences to work on that 
day. So the governor told them that he would spare them till 
they were better informed. But when he and the rest came 
home at noon from their work, he found them in the street at 
play openly, some pitching the bar and some at ball and such 
like sports. So he went to them and took away their imple- 
ments and told them it was against his conscience that they 
should play and others work. If they made the keeping of it 
matter of devotion, he said, let them keep their houses, but 
there should be no gaming or revelling in the street. Later, in 
1659, a law was made that anybody found to be keeping “by 
feasting, or not working, or in any other way, any such day as 
Christmas Day, shall pay for every offense five shillings.” 


28 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


Going Home for Christmas. 

In the course of a December tour in Yorkshire, I rode for a 
long distance in one of the public coaches, on the day preceding 
Christmas. The coach was crowded, both inside and out, with 
passengers, who, by their talk, seemed principally bound to the 
mansions of relations or friends to eat the Christmas dinner. 
It was loaded also with hampers of game, and baskets and 
boxes of delicacies ; and hares hung dangling their long ears 
about the coachman’s box — presents from distant friends for 
the impending feast. I had three fine rosy-cheeked schoolboys 
for my fellow-passengers inside, full of the buxom health and 
manly spirit which I have observed in the children of this coun- 
try. They were returning home for the holidays in high glee, 
and promising themselves a world of enjoyment. It was 'de- 
lightful to hear the gigantic plans of pleasure of the little rogues, 
and the impracticable feats they were to perform during their 
six weeks’ emancipation from the abhorred thraldom of book, 
birch, and pedagogue. They were full of anticipations of the 
meeting with the family and household, down to the very cat 
and dog; and of the joy they were to give their little sisters by 
the presents with which their pockets were crammed; but the 
meeting to which they seemed to look forward with the greatest 
impatience was with Bantam, which I found to be a pony, and, 
according to their talk, possessed of more virtues than any steed 
since the days of Bucephalus. How he could trot! how he 
could run ! and then such leaps as he would take — there was 
not a hedge in the whole country that he could not clear. 























































































































































































































. 




































































GOING HOME FOR CHRISTMAS 


29 


They were under the particular guardianship of the coach- 
man, to whom, whenever an opportunity presented, they ad- 
dressed a host of questions, and pronounced him one of the 
best fellows in the whole world. Indeed, I could not but 
notice the more than ordinary air of bustle and importance of 
the coachman, who wore his hat a little on one side, and had a 
large bunch of Christmas greens stuck in the buttonhole of his 
coat. He is always a personage full of mighty care and busi- 
ness, but he is particularly so during this season, having so 
many commissions to execute in consequence of the great in- 
terchange of presents. . . . 

Perhaps the impending holiday might have given a more 
than usual animation to the country, for it seemed to me as 
if everybody was in good looks and good spirits. Game, 
poultry, and other luxuries of the table were in brisk circula- 
tion in the villages ; the grocers’, butchers’, and fruiterers’ 
shops were thronged with customers. The housewives were 
stirring briskly about, putting their dwellings in order ; and the 
glossy branches of holly, with their bright red berries, began to 
appear at the windows. The scene brought to mind an old 
writer’s account of Christmas preparations : “Now capons 
and hens, besides turkeys, geese, and ducks, with beef and 
mutton — must all die; for in twelve days a multitude of 
people will not be fed with a little. Now plums and spice, 
sugar and honey, square it among pies and broth. Now or 
never must music be in tune, for the youth must dance and 
sing to get them a heat, while the aged sit by the fire. The 
country maid leaves half her market, and must be sent again, 


30 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


if she forgets a pack of cards on Christmas Eve. Great is 
the contention of Holly and Ivy, whether master or dame 
wears the breeches. Dice and cards benefit the butler; and if 
the cook do not lack wit, he will sweetly lick his fingers.” 

I was roused from this fit of luxurious meditation by a 
shout from my little travelling companions. They had been 
looking out of the coach windows for the last few miles, 
recognizing every tree and cottage as they approached home, 
and now there was a general burst of joy — “There’s John! 
and there’s old Carlo ! and there’s Bantam ! ” cried the happy 
little rogues, clapping their hands. 

At the end of a lane there was an old sober-looking servant 
in livery waiting for them ; he was accompanied by a superan- 
nuated pointer, and by the redoubtable Bantam, a little old rat 
of a pony, with a shaggy mane and long rusty tail, who stood 
dozing quietly by the roadside, little dreaming of the bustling 
times that awaited him. 

I was pleased to see the fondness with which the little 
fellows leaped about the steady old footman, and hugged the 
pointer, who wriggled his whole body for joy. But Bantam 
was the great object of interest; all wanted to mount at once; 
and it was with some difficulty that John arranged that they 
should ride by turns, and the eldest should ride first. 

Off they set at last ; one on the pony, with the dog bound- 
ing and barking before him, and the others holding John’s 
hands ; both talking at once, and overpowering him by ques- 
tions about home, and with school anecdotes. I looked after 
them with a feeling in which I do not know whether pleasure 


GOD REST YOU MERRY, GENTLEMEN 


31 


or melancholy predominated; for I was reminded of those 
days when, like them, I had neither known care nor sorrow, 
and a holiday was the summit of earthly felicity. We stopped 
a few moments afterwards to water the horses, and on resum- 
ing our route, a turn of the road brought us in sight of a neat 
country-seat I could just distinguish the forms of a lady and 
two young girls in the portico, and I saw my little comrades, 
with Bantam, Carlo, and old John, trooping along the carriage 
road. I leaned out of the coach window, in hopes of witnessing 
the happy meeting, but a grove of trees shut it from my sight. 

God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen 

God rest you merry, gentlemen, 

Let nothing you dismay, 

For Jesus Christ, our Saviour, 

Was born upon this day; 

To save us all from Satan’s power, 

When we were gone astray. 

O tidings of comfort and joy , 

For Jesus Christ our Saviour 
IVas born on Christmas Day. 

In Bethlehem in Jewry 

This blessed babe was born, 

And laid within a manger 
Upon this blessed morn; 

The which His mother Mary 
Nothing did take in scorn. 


32 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


From God, our Heavenly Father, 

A blessed Angel came, 

And, unto certain shepherds, 

Brought tidings of the same; 

How, that in Bethlehem was born 
The Son of God by name. 

The Shepherds at those tidings, 
Rejoiced much in mind, 

And left their flocks a-feeding 
In tempest, storm, and wind, 

And went to Bethlehem straightway, 
This blessed Babe to find. 

But when to Bethlehem they came, 
Where as this Infant lay, 

They found him in a manger 
Where oxen feed on hay, 

His mother Mary kneeling 
Unto the Lord did pray. 

Now to the Lord sing praises 
All you within this place, 

And with true love and brotherhood 
Each other now embrace, 

This holy tide of Christmas 
All others doth deface. 

0 tidings of comfort and joy , 
For Jesus Christ our Saviour 
IVas born on Christmas Day. 

































































































' 


















































































































































































































•• 


































































THE DATE OF RUSSIA’S CHRISTMASTIDE 


33 


The Date of Russia’s Christmastide 

Real winter in Russia is supposed to start on the 
feast of St. Nicholas of which the date, written in Russian 
style, is December 6/19. The first figure gives the date 
of the month as it is known in Russia and Greece, the 
second the date according to the calendar in use in all 
other civilized countries. 

The calendar which was brought into use by Julius 
Caesar, and was carried all over the then known world 
by the Romans, aimed to measure the year by the time 
it takes the earth to move once around the sun. His 
Egyptian astronomer figured that this required 365^ days, 
so the practice was begun of having three years of 365 
days, followed by a leap year, to which an extra day 
is given. As a matter of fact, the length of the average 
year is not exactly 365^ days. To be sure, that is only 
1 1^ seconds or so out of the way, and this may seem a 
very small matter out of a whole year; but what happens 
is that every 128 years or so the calendar of Julius Caesar 
or the Julian Calendar, as it is called, gets a day behind. 
By the year 1582, when Gregory XIII was Pope, the calen- 
dar was ten days slow. So Pope Gregory issued an order 
that the year was to take a new start and that thereafter 
three leap years out of every four centuries should be 
omitted, which keeps the calendar very nearly correct. 
But though Pope Gregory might decree, it did not follow 
that every one would obey at once; the ignorant thought 


34 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


that by the change of date they were losing ten days of 
time and, of course, of wages. After some confusion all 
the Roman Catholic countries obeyed. England, being 
a Protestant country, ignored Pope Gregory’s commands. 
But it could not so easily dismiss the knowledge of its 
own astronomers that the Gregorian Calendar, as it is called, 
is nearer the truth than the Julian. In 1752, therefore, 
the date of the day of the year was changed by an 
Act of Parliament. The day after September 3 was to 
be called September 14, which it would have been if the 
calendar had not been slow. And naturally the . change 
was also made in America, to which the new style had been 
brought already by French and Spanish settlers from 
Catholic countries. 

There were always hot jealousies between the Eastern 
Church, ruled from Constantinople, and the Western, ruled 
from Rome. The Eastern or Greek churches refused 
to change their calendar on the order of a Latin Pope, 
and to this day retain the old style, the Julian dates. This 
is why their Christmas follows our Twelfth Day, for by 
this time their calendar is thirteen days behind the Gre- 
gorian. But to avoid confusion the double date is very 
generally in use. 

During the time between the Day of St. Nicholas and 
Christmas it seems as if half Russia streams out upon 
the ice of the river Neva in St. Petersburg. All through 
the summer the boats come and go, bringing food, fuel, 
building materials, everything the city needs, from the 


THE DATE OF RUSSIA’S CHRISTMASTIDE 


35 


interior; but the river is frozen for six nxonths of the year, 
and in those months it is used as if it were public land. 
St. Petersburg is a very gay capital in winter, when the 
wealthier Russian nobles have left their country estates, 
and come down to exchange visits, to give balls, or go 
dashing about in gay sleighs to join the sleighing or skating 
contests for which a part of the frozen river is reserved. 
All around the cleared spaces on the ice, merchants have 
set up temporary booths ; here you may buy tea and nut- 
cakes ; there holy pictures, or ikons, pictures of all the pos- 
sible saints, some costing a few pennies, others with gold 
and silver backgrounds costing many roubles, a rouble 
being worth about fifty cents. On another part of the 
river a great provision market is held a little before Christ- 
mas, and the booths stretch for miles. Everything is 
frozen. Countless oxen, piles of sheep and goats, pyramids 
of pigs, form a frozen range of hillocks to which the butcher 
comes to make his choice. With hatchet or saw he divides 
the animal, ox, or pig, or it may be a bear, into sections 
which his customers store in the ice-cellars which have all 
been freshly filled. Thousands of workmen are engaged 
during the winter in cutting and drawing the ice from 
yet another part of the Neva, and on a still frosty morning 
the clink of their axes against iron ice-breakers can be 
heard at a long distance from the river. 

A great ceremony of the Greek Church takes place each 
year at the end of their Christmas season — the Benediction 
of the Waters — in every town and village in Russia and 


36 THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 

down along the coasts of Greece. In St. Petersburg the 
ceremony is performed by the Czar outside the Winter 
Palace. A wooden temple is put up out on the ice, deco- 
rated with gilt and paintings within, and surrounded by a 
hedge of fir boughs without. A hole is made in the ice, 
and to this a long procession makes its way; troops with 
bright banners, gorgeously robed bishops, and priests car- 
rying lighted tapers and big ikons, are followed by more 
soldiers, the Czar and Czarina in magnificently jewelled 
robes, and after them their Court brilliant in uniforms 
and beautiful fur-trimmed dresses. They have all attended 
one service in the Imperial Chapel; they now have another 
on the ice. The water is blessed, evil spirits flee away, 

the soldiers fire a salute, and every one is sprinkled with 

the now holy water. The procession returns to the city, 
carrying with it great vessels of the holy water to be used 

later in all the churches. Then the people who have been 

looking on try to get to the hole ; some draw up pailfuls 
of the cold liquid; others plunge bodily into the icy water, 
believing that so they will be cleansed from sin or sickness; 
many have even plunged delicate babies into it, content, 
if the child does not survive the shock, in the belief that 
its soul is forever saved. And over every door in the great 
city on that day rests the sign of the cross, lest the evil 
spirit expelled from the water should enter any home. 











ST. BARBARA’S GRAIN 


37 


St. Barbara’s Grain 

Only in the south of France, they say, is to be found the 
custom of planting St. Barbara’s grain on the fourth of De- 
cember. Earthenware dishes an inch or two in depth are half 
filled with water, on the surface of which wheat is scattered, or 
the small, flattened seeds of the lentil, a leafy-stemmed plant 
whose honey-laden blossoms will, later in the year, draw 
swarms of golden bees to the fields where it is planted. The 
dish is then set in the warm ashes of the fireplace, or on the 
deep stone sill of a sunny window, and the grain is left to 
sprout and grow so that on the table of the Christmas Eve 
supper there may be this tender promise of the harvest of the 
year to come — a pale, delicate young greenness in strong 
contrast with the darker evergreens. The bent old gran mere 
by the hearth will tell you, that as the growth is thick and 
sturdy or scattered and thin, so will be the later harvests of 
grain, or honey. 

The yellow daffodil, or narcissus, is a plant which first grew 
in southern France, and along the Mediterranean, and it may 
be that it was some early settler from Languedoc or Provence, 
who introduced into Louisiana a custom common half a 
century ago, that had a dim resemblance to this planting of 
St. Barbara’s grain. The daffodil bulbs were planted in shal- 
low earthenware dishes on the eve of All Saints, and set for 
three weeks in the warm dark, and later in the sun. The older 
creoles foretold a fruitful year if the flower bud were well 
formed by St. Barbara’s day. 


38 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


Before the Paling of the Stars 

Before the paling of the stars, 
Before the winter morn, 

Before the earliest cockcrow, 

Jesus Christ was born: 

Born in a stable, 

Cradled in a manger, 

In the world His hands had made 
Born a stranger. 

Priest and King lay fast asleep 
In Jerusalem, 

Young and old lay fast asleep 
In crowded Bethlehem : 

Saint and Angel, ox and ass, 

Kept a watch together 
Before the Christmas daybreak 
In the winter weather. 

Jesus on His Mother's breast 
In the stable cold, 

Spotless Lamb of God was He, 
Shepherd of the fold: 

Let us kneel with Mary Maid, 
With Joseph bent and hoary, 
With Saint and Angel, ox and ass, 
To hail the King of Glory. 


A MIDNIGHT MASS 


39 


A Midnight Mass in France 

The great time for making gifts in France is the Jour de 
V An, the day of the year, our New Year’s Day, when there 
is a great exchange of cards, good wishes, visits, and 
presents. On Christmas Eve, everything else used to pale 
before the exciting adventure of going to the church at mid- 
night. After church came the Grand Supper, a family gath- 
ering from which the children were sent to bed long before 
they were ready to go, comforting themselves as they 
climbed the stair by asking each other, “ What do you think 
P’tit Noel will put in your shoe?” But they were always 
too sleepy to lie awake long enough to see whose hand it 
was that dropped into each little shoe under the mantelpiece 
a few goodies or bits of silver coin. Sometimes one was 
guiltily afraid that a black record of naughtiness deserved 
the disgracing gift of a few pebbles, but then, — surely Petit 
Jesus was forgiving and next year one would be very good, 
yes, of a certainty, most good. 

Earlier in the evening the children had been allowed to 
play any game they liked, however noisy, quite up to eleven 
o’clock, which was unusual enough by itself. Then began a 
great bundling up in furs and mufflers before the plunge 
from the warm candle-lighted room into the frosty night, 
where stars shone like gold nails driven into blue-black velvet ; 
the frost crunched under wooden shoes; the lanterns threw 
strange, wavering shadows; a dry branch fell with a sudden 
crackle; far away a horse whickered and stamped just as 


40 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


one was coming toward the deepest blackness of all, where 
the great gray church and the tall buildings about it threw 
the Grande Place into densest shadow. Nothing in that sound 
should frighten one, but every child had heard the peasants 
tell of this enchanted hour when animals in their stables 
could talk like men ; still, nothing could harm a child on 
the way to mass, of course, so one plucked up courage and 
sang out extra loudly in the refrain of whatever carol was 
being rung on the chimes in the ivy-covered tower. 

The old church had always seemed large, very large for 
the few who worshipped in it, but now it was majestic, 
reaching up toward the skies as if to gather from the 
angelic choir the great waves of music that rolled down the 
valley to be heard miles away. And how could one help 
gasping when a gust of wind swept him suddenly into the 
porch ; there through the open door he was caught and 
drawn forward, adoring, by the full splendor of the altar, 
studded with lights, dazzling against dark walls, green with 
pine and laurel. 

At one side was the creche, the miniature stable scene, 
where the mother ever watched in wondering love the Holy 
Child. Down the long nave, from the damp stone floor 
which had never known the luxury of matting, great pillars 
lost themselves in the blackness of the arches. But each 
who entered brought his lantern and set it on the stones in 
front of him ; one after another the little lights like stars 
came twinkling out all over the church. And each new- 
comer joined in the carols sung before the mass was 



































































































r 

< 













































































































» 


































































A MIDNIGHT MASS 


4i 


begun — old, old carols with beloved refrains which one 
heard only at Christmas time. 

The old mysteries, quaint plays in which long ago the 
peasants of Southern France acted the simple stories of the 
adoration of the Babe by the angels, the shepherds, and the 
Wise Men, are seen no more, but it is said that until very 
recently, in some of the provinces, at a certain pause in the 
mass, a shepherd knocks loudly on the great church door, 
the hollow sound echoing in the solemn hush. From with- 
out is heard singing, the voices of shepherds asking to come 
in. Slowly the doors swing back, the people part and the 
shepherds enter, passing up the nave between a double row 
of worshippers. In front are two or three boys playing 
softly on simple musical instruments, one has a flute, an- 
other a tambourine. Then begins a quaint musical dialogue 
between these peasants in their long, weather-stained cloaks, 
and those who stand on either side. 

From one hand comes the question, in high treble, 
IVhere hast thou been f 
And it is echoed from the other, 

IV hat hast thou seen ? 

And the deep musical voices of the shepherds answer: — 

“ Deep in a manger , a little child , 

On the dry straw , slumbered and smiled? 

So they move slowly, carrying a little fruit, a measure of 
grain, a pair of pigeons, to where the priest stands waiting to 
bless their simple gifts and lay them at theToot of the altar. 


42 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


The Christchild and the Pine Tree 

On the Holy Night when the Christchild was born, the 
earth lay very near to heaven; all the world was at peace, 
and there was no noise of war to keep men on earth from 
hearing the angels sing. 

Animals and birds and trees alike were glad because of 
the coming of the Holy Babe, and like the shepherds and 
the Wise Men came to bring to Him their gifts. Most of 
all the little pine tree beside the road longed to take some- 
thing to the Christchild. 

The cedars, instead of pointing their branches upward in 
pointed slender trees, spread their branches wide, as Cedars 
of Lebanon do to this day, and bent low to shelter the 
Mother and Child. But the little pine was too small to 
shelter anything, and though he stretched and stretched, he 
was not even tall enough to keep the sun out of the eyes 
of the Wonderful Babe. He was barely tall enough for the 
wind to make a whispering sound in the tips of his little 
branches. 

The thorn, although it was midwinter, suddenly blos- 
somed out and brought its white flowers to make a coverlet 
for the Child’s cradle. And the little pine tree tried so hard 
to blossom that pine-needles came out in tufts all over him, 
but that was all ; only the wind through his branches now 
sounded like a sigh. 

The “bird of God,” which we call the wren, flew quickly 
and brought soft moss and feathers to make His cradle 


THE CHRISTCHILD AND THE PINE TREE 


43 


warm. “ I will pull off all my needles to make a bed for 

Him,” the pine tree said. But when he began to do that, 

Mother Mary smiled and shook her head. “Your needles 
would only prick Him, little pine,” she said. And the little 
pine rocked in pain and the wind sighed through his branches. 

The olive came and brought sweet-smelling oil, with which 
to rub the Christchild’s little limbs; and the pine tree saw her 
and ached so for something to give that the resin stood out 
in big drops along his stem. “Oh!” he cried joyfully, “I, 
too, have oil to give.” And Mother Mary’s smile was very 
tender as she shook her head again and said gently, “ But 

your drops are sticky, and they would hurt His tender skin, 

dear little pine.” So the little pine was very unhappy because 
it had nothing to offer the Christchild. And year by year 
as he grew taller, and remembered the Holy Night, the wind 
swept through his branches with a sound that was almost a 
moan; and ever since you can hear that sound from pine 
trees all the world over. 

Now for hundreds of years after, on each Christmas Eve, 
the Christchild comes again, in the likeness of a poor child, 
gathering fallen sticks in the forest. Up and down the hills 
He goes, shivering in the icy cold, knocking at every door, 
whether it is of a cabin or a castle, until He finds some one 
who, remembering His lesson of love, calls Him in to find 
warmth and shelter; and such a home He blesses. Some 
there are who, like the pine tree, long to serve Him, and these 
place a candle in the window, that if He pass along their 
way, He may see it and come in. 


44 THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 

But one night there was no door open and as He walked 
wearily through the pine wood the wind shrieked through the 
trees bending before Him. Then the Christchild turned aside 
and crept under the low branches of a pine tree, which was 
large enough now to shelter Him; and the moss lifted itself 
from the snow to make a soft bed for the tired Child. And 
the pine tree, drawing its branches close above Him, was so 
happy that tears of joy ran down his branches and freezing, 
hung in slender icicles. And as the first red rays of the sun 
on Christmas morning shone upon them they glittered like 
the candles on your Christmas tree, and the Christchild 
opened His eyes and smiled. 

A Birthday Gift 

What can I give Him, 

Poor as I am ? 

If I were a shepherd 
I would bring a lamb, 

If I were a Wise Man 
I would do my part, 

Yet what I can give Him, — 

Give my heart. 







































■ ? i i 



















THE CHRISTMAS FIRE IN SERVIA 


45 


The Christmas Fire in Servia 

Servia is one of the countries in which the old, old cus- 
toms have lasted longest. They began in the times when men 
looked forward longingly to “ the days in which the sun, hav- 
ing gone far enough into the snowy plains of the winter, turns 
back toward the green fields of summer.” The celebration 
begins on the day before Christmas, which the older Servian 
songs call “ the day of the old Badnyak.” No one seems to 
know who Badnyak was ; but some have believed that the 
fast-day was first kept in honor of the old sun-god, who was 
thought of as grown weak and faint, and as giving place to 
a younger. For on the next day was the feast of “the little 
God,” the new sun who was to bring summer back again. 
Nowadays, the name is given to logs cut for the Christmas fire. 

Every Servian boy is up before daylight on the day before 
Christmas, for he, of course, must be on hand when the 
strongest young men of the family start out with a cart and 
a pair of oxen to cut a young oak tree and bring it home. 
Upon the chosen tree they throw a handful of wheat with the 
greeting, “ Happy Badnyi Day to you ! ” Then they begin to 
cut it very carefully, timing the strokes of the axes and plac- 
ing them so that the tree shall fall directly toward the rising 
sun, and at the exact moment when its red ball begins to 
show at the edge of the world. If by any mischance, or a 
stroke of the axe in the wrong place, the tree falls toward the 
west, there will be great distress, for this is thought to mean 
that very bad luck will follow the family through all the 


46 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


coming year. If the tree should fall in the right direction but 
catch in the branches of another, the good fortune of the 
family will only be delayed for a while. The small boy’s 
part is to watch very closely where the first chip falls, for it 
is most important to carry home that first oak chip. The 
trunk of the tree is trimmed and cut into two or three logs, 
of which one is a foot or more longer than the others. They 
are then dragged to the house, but are not taken inside until 
sunset ; in the meantime they stand in the courtyard on either 
side the door. The house mother leaves her work as they are 
brought home to break a flat cake of purest wheat flour upon 
the longest log, while the little girls sing special songs. But 
soon she goes back to her work, for there is a deal to be done 
before sunset ; the women are making Christmas cakes in the 
shape of lambs and chickens, and most often of little pigs 
with blunt-pointed noses and curly tails. For the pig belongs 
to a Servian Christmas as much as turkey does to an American 
Thanksgiving. Long ago the pagan Servians used to sacrifice 
a pig to the sun-god on the day of the old Badnyak; and to 
this day you will not find one Servian house in which “roast 
pig” is not the chief dish of the Christmas dinner. While the 
women bake, the men prepare the pig for the next day’s roast- 
ing. The boy who so carefully brought home that first oak 
chip put it at once into a wooden bowl, and his little sister and 
he cover the chip, and fill the bowl with wheat. 

Just at sunset the whole family gathers in the big kitchen. 
The mother of the family gives a pair of woollen gloves to 
one of the men — most often to the father, sometimes to the 


THE DAY OF THE LITTLE GOD 47 

strongest of her sons, who goes outside to bring in the Bad- 
nyak. Tall wax candles are set on either side the open door, 
and in front of it the mother stands with the wooden bowl in 
her hands. As the log is brought in she throws a handful of 
wheat at the bearer, who says, “ Good evening, and may you 
have a happy Badnyi Day.” He is answered by a chorus of 
greetings from all in the room. In some parts of the country 
each man present brings in a log and at each is thrown a little 
wheat in sign of the wish that, in the year to come, food may 
be plenty enough to throw away. A glass of red wine is then 
sprinkled on the log, and the oldest and the strongest of the 
family together place it on the burning fire in such a way that 
the thick end of the log sticks out above the hearth for about 
a foot. And sometimes you may see a prudent father smear 
the end of it with honey and place on it a bowl of wheat, an 
orange, and the ploughshare, that they may be so warmed by 
the Christmas fire that the cattle shall be fed, the bees indus- 
trious, and the trees and fields be fruitful, through all the year. 

The Day of the Little God 

There is so little sleep for the Servian peasant on a 
Christmas morning that very few except the old and the 
babies go to bed at all on the night before “ the day of the 
little God,” as it is called. For one thing, the new Badnyak, 
the great log on the Christmas fire, must be kept burning all 
the time, and brightly. Then the all-important pig must be 
set to roast early. When it is ready and laid before the fire, 


48 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


some one goes outside and fires off a gun or pistol ; and when 
the roasted pig is taken from the fire, the shooting is repeated. 
From four to eight o’clock on a Christmas morning every 
Servian village reechoes as if it were celebrating the Fourth 
of July with cannon crackers. 

Just before sunrise some young girl of the family goes 
to the fountain, or the brook from which they usually get 
their drinking water. Before she fills her pots or jars she 
greets the water, wishing it a happy Christmas, and throws 
into it a handful of wheat. The first cupfuls of water drawn 
are put into a special jar and are used to make the “ Ches- 
nitza,” the Christmas cake, which is to be divided into a piece 
for each member of the family, present or absent. A small 
silver coin baked into it is supposed to fall to the lot of that 
member of the family who is to meet with special good fortune 
during the coming year. 

No other visitor is allowed to enter the house before the 
“ Polaznik,” the Christmas guest, has come. The part is 
usually taken by some boy from a neighbor’s family, who 
comes very early and brings with him a woollen glove full 
of wheat. When at his knock the door is opened, he showers 
the wheat over those around the brightly burning fire and into 
all corners of the room with the greeting, “ Christ is born.” 
The mother of the family throws a handful of wheat at him 
and all the others shout, “ In truth, He is born ! ” The guest 
then walks straight to the fire, and with the heavy shovel 
strikes the burning log with all his force repeatedly, so that 
thousands of sparks rise high in the chimney, while he says, 







THE DAY OF THE LITTLE GOD 


49 


“ May you have this year so many oxen, so many horses, so 
many sheep, so many pigs, so many beehives of honey, so 
much good luck, so much success and happiness.” After this 
good wish he kisses his host, drops to his knees before the 
Christmas log on the fire, kisses one end of it, which sticks 
out of the fireplace into the room, and places a coin upon it 
as his gift. As he rises, a woman offers him a low wooden 
chair, but just as he seats himself draws it away so that he 
sits down hard upon the ground, and is thus supposed to fix 
to it firmly every good wish he has spoken. Finally he is 
wrapped in a thick blanket, and with it around him sits 
quietly for a few minutes while the young folks who are to 
tend the flocks and herds in the coming year come to the 
hearth and kiss each other solemnly across the Christmas log. 
The wearing of the blanket is said to insure thick cream in 
the next year, and the shepherds’ kisses will make for peace 
and plenty among the cattle. 

Before the chief meal of the day, all the members of the 
family gather about its head, each with a lighted candle in 
hand, while he prays briefly. Then they turn and kiss each 
other with such greetings as : “ Peace of God be with us ! ” 
“Christos is born!” “In truth, He is born!” “Therefore 
let us bow before Christos and His birth.” And toward the 
end of the meal all stand to drink “ to the glory of God and 
of the birth of Christ,” which marks the end of the Christmas 
celebration. 


50 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


Nature Folk-lore of Christmastide 

Among all the older peoples of Europe there are many bits 
of folk stories which tell of the wonderful peace which fell upon 
the world on the night of the Holy Eve. A Bosnian legend 
says that at the time of the birth of Christ “ the sun in the east 
bowed down, the stars stood still, the mountains and the forests 
shook and touched the earth with their summits, and the green 
pine tree bent, . . . the grass was beflowered with opening blos- 
soms, incense sweet as myrrh pervaded upland and forest, birds 
sang on the mountain top, and all gave thanks to the great 
God.” This belief in the holy and gracious kinship of all 
nature at this season finds expression in many countries in an 
added tenderness for all living things during Yuletide. The 
very sparrows, whose nests the boys are free to raid at any other 
time, have a sheaf of rye set up for their Christmas feast, says 
Mr. Riis, who tells that once, stranded in a Michigan town, he 
was wandering about the streets and came upon such a sheaf 
raised upon a pole in a dooryard. “ I knew at once,” he says, 
“that one of my people lived in that house and kept Yule in 
the old way. So I felt as if I were not quite a stranger.” 

In England, robins are the birds of Christmas time; an 
old legend has it that on the day of Christ’s suffering the robin 
fluttered beside Him, and in trying to pluck thorns from His 
crown stained its breast crimson. 

So ever when the snow comes round 
To crown the wintry year, 


NATURE FOLK-LORE OF CHRISTMASTIDE 


5i 


Perched high upon the holly bough 
Red Robin warbles clear. 

No other songster on the spray 
At Christmas time is heard, 

But when the Saviour’s birth we keep, 

We hear the Saviour’s bird. 

The Spanish show special kindness at this time to any ass or 
cow, believing that on Holy Night they breathed upon the 
Christchild to keep Him warm. Many other quaint old beliefs 
used to be common about how the animals act at Christmas 
time. From northern Canada comes the Indian saying that on 
the Holy Night the deer all kneel and look up to the Great 
Spirit, but that whoever spies upon them will have stiffness in 
his knees for all the year to come. In the German Alps it was 
believed that animals have the gift of speech on Christmas 
Eve, but that he who listens will surely hear them foretell some 
evil for the listener. Of a like belief Mr. Riis says that, when 
he was a boy : — 

“All the animals knew perfectly well that the holiday 
had come, and kept it in their way. The watch-dog was 
unchained. In the midnight hour on the Holy Eve the 
cattle stood up in their stalls and bowed out of respect and 
reverence for Him who was laid in a manger when there 
was no room in the inn, and in that hour speech was given 
them, and they talked together. Claus, our neighbor’s man, 
had seen and heard it, and every Christmas Eve I meant 
fully to go and be there when it happened; but always 


52 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


long before that I had been led away to bed, a very sleepy 
boy, with all my toys hugged tight, and when I woke up 
the daylight shone through the frosted window-panes, and 
they were blowing good morning from the church tower; 
it would be a whole year before another Christmas. So I 
vowed, with a sigh at having neglected a really sacred 
observance, that I would be there sure on the next Christmas 
Eve. But it was always so, every year, and perhaps it 
was just as well, for Claus said that it might go ill with 
the one who listened, if the cows found him out.” 

In the older parts of Montenegro, the head of the family 
and his shepherd boy still follow the quaint old custom 
of lighting the animals to their stalls on Christmas Eve. 
Each takes a lighted wax candle and they go together into 
every stall in turn, holding the candles for a moment in 
each of its corners. Then, at the stable door they take 
stand, one at each side of it, and hold their candles high 
while the little shepherdess drives the animals in. One by 
one, sheep, goats, and oxen, they pass between the flick- 
ering lights. After that, the shepherd boy and the little 
shepherdess kiss each other “ that the cattle may live in 
peace and love,” they say. 




J3nq >fvldol>l 


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1 




















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GOOD KING WENCESLAS 


53 


Good King Wenceslas 

Good King Wenceslas looked out 
On the Feast of Stephen, 

When the snow lay round about, 
Deep, and crisp, and even. 

Brightly shone the moon that night, 
Though the frost was cruel, 

When a poor man came in sight, 
Gath’ring winter fuel. 

“ Hither, page, and stand by me, 

If thou know’st it telling, 

Yonder peasant, who is he? 

Where and what his dwelling ? ” 

“Sire, he lives a good league hence, 
Underneath the mountain; 

Right against the forest fence, 

By St. Agnes’ fountain.” 

“ Bring me flesh, and bring me wine, 
Bring me pine logs hither; 

Thou and I will see him dine, 

When we bear them thither.” 

Page and monarch forth they went, 
Forth they went together; 

Through the rude wind’s wild lament, 
And the bitter weather.” 


54 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


“Sire, the night is darker now, 

And the wind blows stronger; 

Fails my heart, I know not how, 

I can go no longer/’ 

“ Mark my footsteps, good my page ! 

Tread thou in them boldly; 

Thou shalt find the winter’s rage 
Freeze thy blood less coldly.” 

In his master’s steps he trod, 

Where the snow lay dinted; 

Heat was in the very sod 
Which the saint had printed. 

Therefore, Christian men, be sure, 

Wealth or rank possessing, 

Ye who now will bless the poor, 

Shall yourselves find blessing. 

A Mexican “Mystery” seen by Bayard Taylor 

Against the wing-wall of the Hacienda del Mayo, which 
occupied one end of the plaza, was raised a platform, on which 
stood a table covered with a scarlet cloth. A rude bower of 
cane leaves on one end of the platform represented the man- 
ger of Bethlehem, while a cord stretched from its top across 
the plaza to a hole in the front of the church bore a large tinsel 
star, suspended by a hole in its centre. There was quite a 
crowd in the plaza, and very soon a procession appeared, com- 


A MEXICAN “ MYSTERY ” SEEN BY BAYARD TAYLOR 


55 


in g up from the lower part of the village. The three kings 
took the lead; the Virgin, mounted on an ass that gloried in a 
gilded saddle and rose-besprinkled mane and tail, followed them, 
led by the angel ; and several women, with curious masks of 
paper, brought up the rear. Two characters, of the harlequin 
sort — one with a dog’s head on his shoulders, and the other a 
bald-headed friar, with a huge hat hanging on his back — played 
all sorts of antics for the diversion of the crowd. After making 
the circuit of the plaza, the Virgin was taken to the platform, 
and entered the manger. King Herod took his seat at the scar- 
let table, with an attendant in blue coat and red sash, whom I 
took to be his Prime Minister. The three kings remained on 
their horses in front of the church ; between them and the plat- 
form, under the string on which the star was to slide, walked two 
men in long white robes and blue hoods, with parchment folios 
in their hands. These were the Wise Men of the East, as one 
might readily know from their solemn air, and the mysterious 
glances which they cast toward all quarters of the heavens. 

In a little while, a company of women on the platform, 
concealed behind a curtain, sang an angelic chorus to the tune 
of “ Opescator dell’ onda.” At the proper moment, the Magi 
turned toward the platform, following the star, to which a 
string was conveniently attached that it might be slid along the 
line. The three kings followed the star till it reached the 
manger, when they dismounted, and inquired for the sovereign, 
whom it had led them to visit. They were invited upon the 
platform and introduced to Herod, as the only king ; this did not 
seem to satisfy them, and, after some conversation, they retired. 


56 THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 

By this time the star had receded to the other end of the line 
and commenced moving again, they following. The angel 
called them into the manger, where, upon their knees, they were 
shown a small wooden box, supposed to contain the sacred in- 
fant: they then retired, and the star brought them back no 
more. After this departure, King Herod declared himself 
greatly confused by what he had witnessed, and was very much 
afraid this newly found king would weaken his power. Upon 
consultation with his Prime Minister, the Massacre of the Inno- 
cents was decided upon, as the only means of security. 

The angel, on hearing this, gave warning to the Virgin, 
who quickly got down from the platform, mounted her be- 
spangled donkey, and hurried off. Herod’s Prime Minister di- 
rected all the children to be handed up for execution. A boy, 
in ragged sarape, was caught and thrust forward ; the Minister 
took him by the heels in spite of his kicking, and held his head 
on the table. The little brother and sister of the boy, thinking he 
was really to be decapitated, yelled at the top of their voices, in 
an agony of terror, which threw the crowd into a roar of laughter. 
King Herod brought down his sword with a whack on the 
table, and the Prime Minister, dipping his brush into a pot of 
white paint which stood before him, made a flaring cross on 
the boy’s face. Several other boys were caught and served 
likewise; and finally, the two harlequins, whose kicks and 
struggles nearly shook down the platform. The procession 
then went off up the hill, followed by the whole population of 
the village. 






























































































































































4 
















































. 































































































































































BREAKING THE PINATE 


57 


Breaking the Pinate 

If you were in Mexico the week before Christmas you 
would not find one Christmas tree, unless it were in some town 
where Americans have been living for a good while. But 
everywhere children would be talking about breaking a pinate 
(pronounced pin-yah-tay) as you talk of having a tree. In the 
small stalls set up in the plazas for the sale of Christmas gifts 
there are hundreds of different gayly colored pinates. Some 
are bowl-shaped or oval jars made out of the coarse red earthen- 
ware of Puebla, painted with dashes of yellow and black in pat- 
terns that have # been copied from old Indian pottery. Others 
are made of paper in gay stripes of red and yellow, in shape 
like tissue-paper balloons, and are decorated with tinsel orna- 
ments and streamers of bright-colored paper, such as are hung 
on Christmas trees. Others still are made in the shape of gro- 
tesque figures, clowns with baggy trousers, dancing girls in 
wide-spread skirts, monks in long cloaks, and animals. All of 
them, jars or paper figures, are easily breakable; they are 
stuffed with sweets, crackers, rattles, whistles, or any other toys 
which are small and light, and parents hang them — usually on 
Christmas Eve — from the ceiling of a room or from a branch 
of a tree in the courtyard. Each child of the family in turn 
after being blindfolded, given a long stick, and led some distance 
away from the hanging pinate, is allowed to grope toward where 
he thinks it is and to strike out at it three times in the effort 
to break it. If he fails, another is given the chance. Mexican 
families are large and often a father and all his sons live to- 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


58 

gether in square, flat-roofed buildings of sun-dried brick around 
a common courtyard. So there is a deal of laughter and excit- 
ment as one child after another makes his trial. At last one 
manages to hit the pinate so that it breaks open and toys, sweets, 
and ornaments come down in a shower. This is the moment 
for which the children crowding around have been waiting, and 
they swoop down upon the dainties in a joyous scramble. The 
successful child usually receives a special prize; for, blindfolded 
as he is, he stands small chance of getting anything else. 

Breaking the pinate usually follows a curious ceremony in 
which all those present walk together around the house several 
times chanting a litany. The procession is in memory of the 
night when Joseph and Mary journeyed to Bethlehem and 
found no room in the inn. Often even the donkey belonging 
to the family is brought into the ceremony. After the litany 
some go within the house while others outside sing a plea for 
admittance, which is at first roughly refused. Finally they are 
admitted, and another hymn is followed by feasting and merry- 
making, of which breaking the pinate is the children’s part. 



CHRISTMAS UPON A GREENLAND ICEBERG 


59 


Christmas upon a Greenland Iceberg 

One hot June day in 1869 there was a great stir in the 
new harbor of Bremerhaven in Germany; at its entrance 
lay two stout ships, the Germania and the Hansa , fully 
fitted out for Arctic exploration. Visitors and messengers 
were going back and forth. The King of Prussia himself, 
with many of his nobles, the Grand Duke of Mecklenburg, 
Schwerin, Count Bismarck, and General von Moltke among 
them, had come from Berlin to say Godspeed to the com- 
mander and the scientific gentlemen who were braving 
unknown dangers, and certain privations and hardships “for 
the honor of the German navy and of German science,” as 
his Majesty expressed it. 

The last of the cases of stores hoisted on board the 
Hansa were stowed away with a peculiar laughing tender- 
ness. They were stout chests cased in lead in which friends 
of these explorers had placed such friendly little trifles as 
are inseparable from the celebration of Christmas wherever 
the Germans may be. 

There is no place in this book for the story of their 
adventures in the slow voyage up beyond the ice line. In 
July, by some misunderstanding of signals, the two ships 
separated, never to meet again. In September the Hansa 
was caught in a great field of floating ice and was carried 
for two hundred days thereafter in the drift of the floe. An 
October storm so racked the ship that her captain and crew 
were forced to abandon her and carry everything out upon 


6o 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


the ice. The great coal-bin of the ship was taken out and 
turned into a store hut. All the supplies were taken there, 
the ship’s three boats were carefully secured, everything was 
taken from the Hansa which could be used for fuel, and at 
last the ship was cut away from the ice lest in sinking she 
destroy them. 

Then began a frightful period of drifting. Storm after 
storm put them in danger of a sudden death which may 
have seemed more desirable than waiting for the winds and 
currents to carry them slowly into a warmer sea and toward 
the natural breaking up of the ice-floe. Hope of rescue in 
those lonely waters was faint. 

But they lived bravely and worked steadily, constructing 
around the main hut, from the timbers saved from the 
Hansa , small black shelters in which, all but buried in the 
snow, the men lived. And that they kept Christmas in 
true German fashion the log of the vessel tells: — 

“ The tree was erected in the afternoon, while the greater 
part of the crew took a walk ; and the lonely hut shone with 
wonderful brightness amid the snow. Christmas upon a 
Greenland iceberg ! The tree was artistically put together of 
firwood and ravelled matweed [hemp?], and Dr. Laube had 
saved a twist of wax taper for the illumination. Chains of 
colored paper and newly baked cakes were not wanting, and the 
men had made a knapsack and a revolver case as a present for 
the captain. We opened the leaden chests of presents from 
Professor Hochstetter and the Geological Society, and were 
much amused by their contents. Each man had a glass of 




































' 





























































* . 















































































LUTHER’S CHRISTMAS CAROL FOR CHILDREN 


61 


port wine ; and we then turned over the old newspapers which 
we found in the chests, and drew lots for the presents, which 
consisted of small musical instruments, such as fifes, jews’-harps, 
trumpets, etc., with draughts and other games, puppets, 
crackers, etc. In the evening we feasted on chocolate and 
gingerbread.” 

“We observed the day very quietly,” wrote Dr. Laube in 
his diary. “If this Christmas be the last we are to see, it was 
at least a cheerful one ; but should a happy return home be 
decreed for us, the next will, we trust, be a far brighter. May 
God so grant ! ” 

And He did. But that is not a Christmas story, and you 
will have to look elsewhere for it. 

Luthers Christmas Carol for Children 

Good news from Heaven the angels bring, 

Glad tidings to the earth they sing: 

To us this day a child is given, 

To crown us with the joy of heaven. 

This is the Christ, our Lord and God, 

Who in all need shall aid afford: 

He will Himself our Saviour be, 

From sin and sorrow set us free. 

To us that blessedness He brings, 

Which from the Fathers bounty springs: 

That in the heavenly realm we may 
With Him enjoy eternal day. 


62 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


All hail, Thou noble Guest, this morn, 
Whose love did not the sinner scorn! 
In my distress Thou cam’st to me: 
What thanks shall I return to Thee? 

Were earth a thousand times as fair, 
Beset with gold and jewels rare, 

She yet were far too poor to be 
A narrow cradle, Lord, for Thee. 

Ah, dearest Jesus, Holy Child! 

Make Thee a bed, soft, undefiled, 
Within my heart, that it may be 
A quiet chamber kept for Thee. 

Praise God upon His heavenly throne, 
Who gave to us His only Son: 

For this His hosts, on joyful wing, 

A blest New Year of mercy sing. 



THE GOOD NIGHT IN SPAIN 


63 


The Good Night in Spain 

If you were a child in Spain, you would not be talking of 
Christmas trees in the late December days, but of navidades , 
or “ nativities.” These are tiny models of a scene supposed 
to be Bethlehem. Some of them are very simple, made of 
cardboard, colored paper, bits of stone and sand. On one 
side is a hill, built up of paper or plaster, and in the side of 
it is the cave to which the gentle cattle were used to come 
for food and shelter. By its crude match-wood manger stand 
or sit little figures of the Holy Family. Often these are mod- 
elled from beautiful designs, the work of famous artists who 
put their highest skill into creating the tiny images of the 
mother and the Holy Child. Outside the cave stand the 
patient oxen, and perhaps the donkey upon which the Infant 
Christ is to be carried out of the reach of Herod. Overhead 
sparkles a shining star. Some of these simple “nativities” 
can be bought for a few cents. Others made of better mate- 
rials, or with greater care, and with many figures, are more 
costly. These have, besides the Holy Family, perhaps, a fire 
of ruddy tinfoil around which shepherds gather, looking, in 
their straight brown cloaks, as if they might have stepped from 
your Noah’s ark, and back of them, on a hillside of green cloth, 
little white wool lambs feed quietly. In still another you may 
even see a smuggler with a slouch hat pulled down over his 
eyes, hiding with a load of tobacco behind a paper rock to 
leave the road free for the Three Kings who in all their tinsel 
go journeying to worship the Holy Child. The roads are 


64 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


rough with bits of cork, the river is a strip of glass, and the 
bridge over which the camels of the Wise Men pass is clearly 
of paper stone; the rabbit hiding in the evergreens is quite as 
large as the donkey saddled for the flight into Egypt; but in 
the magic of “the Holy Night” all seem to be real, to live and 
feel, so natural and tender is the children’s faith in these simple 
“ nativities,” which are repeated on a larger scale in all the 
churches. 

On Christmas Eve, or the Good Night, as the Spanish 
children say, every one must go to the church for the midnight 
mass, and of course no one goes to bed before that. Early in 
the dusk the toy dealers bring their booths and flaming naph- 
tha torches to the village plaza, and the children swarm around 
them like flies to sweets. All the week before groups of these 
children have been going from door to door at night singing 
to familiar tunes ballads which tell the story of the Nativity, 
and he is a poor Spaniard who cannot find some small coins 
for the band of singers. On Holy Night, too, after they have 
made the small round of the toy-dealers’ stands, they go to 
each other’s houses to look at the different nativities and sing 
one carol after another in which a single voice carries a verse, 
remembered or made up at the time, and the others join in the 
refrain while two of them dance. At the end of each verse the 
two whose turn it has been to dance go up to the nativity 
with flushed cheeks and bright eyes, open wide their little 
arms and fall on their knees, with the exclamation “ For Thee.” 
In some places the children will instead carry a nativity into 
the plaza, singing carols in which every one joins. 









■ 







THE GOOD NIGHT IN SPAIN 


65 


One such carol is this lullaby: — 

“The Baby Child of Mary, 

Now cradle He has none; 

His father is a carpenter 

And he shall make Him one. 
His father is a carpenter 
And he shall make Hhn one. 

“The Lady, good St. Anna, 

The Lord, St. Joachim, 

They rock the Baby’s cradle 
That sleep may come to Him. 
They rock the Baby s cradle 
That sleep may come to Him. 

“Then sleep thou, too, my baby, 

My little heart so dear; 

The Virgin is beside thee, 

The Son of God is near. 

The Virgin is beside thee , 

The Son of God is near.” 



66 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


A Christmas Tree in Japan 

It was a huge Christmas tree, the first that had ever grown 
in our compound, 1 for the children of our servants and writers 
and employees, who make up the number of our Legation 
population to close on two hundred. I could not have the tree 
on Christmas Day, owing to various engagements; so it was 
fixed for January 3, and was quite the most successful enter- 
tainment I ever gave ! 

When I undertook it, I confess that I had no idea how many 
little ones belonged to the compound. I sent our good Ogita 
round to invite them all solemnly to come to Ichiban (Number 
One) on the 3d at five o’clock. Ogita threw himself into the 
business with delighted good-will, having five little people of 
his own to include in the invitation ; but all the servants were 
eager to help as soon as they knew we were preparing a treat 
for the children. That is work which would always appeal to 
Japanese of any age or class. No trouble is too great, if it 
brings pleasure to the “ treasure flowers,” as the babies are 
called. Some of them were not little, and these were more 
difficult to buy presents for ; but after many cold hours passed 
in the different bazaars, it seemed to me that there must be 
something for everybody, although we had really spent very 
little money. 

The wares were so quaint and pretty that it was a pleasure 
to sort and handle them. There were work-boxes in beautiful 

1 The British Legation compound is the enclosure in which the official representatives of the 
English government in any Japanese city live with their assistants, families, and servants. 


A CHRISTMAS TREE IN JAPAN 67 

polished woods, with drawers fitting so perfectly that when you 
closed one the compressed air at once shot out another. There 
were mirrors enclosed in charming embroidered cases; for 
where mirrors are mostly made of metal, people learn not to 
let them get scratched. There were dollies of every size, and 
dolls’ houses and furniture, kitchens, farmyards, rice-pounding 
machines — all made in the tiniest proportions, such as it seemed 
no human fingers could really have handled. For the elder 
boys we bought books, school-boxes with every school requisite 
contained in a square the size of one’s hand, and penknives and 
scissors, which are greatly prized as being of foreign manufac- 
ture. For decorations we had an abundant choice of materials. 
I got forests of willow branches decorated with artificial fruits ; 
pink and white balls made of rice paste, which are threaded on 
the twigs ; surprise shells of the same paste, two lightly stuck 
together in the form of a double scallop shell, and full of minia- 
ture toys ; kanzashi, or ornamental hairpins for the girls, made 
flowers of gold and silver among my dark pine branches ; and 
I wasted precious minutes in opening and shutting these dainty 
roses — buds until you press a spring, when they open suddenly 
into a full-blown rose. But the most beautiful things on my 
tree were the icicles, which hung in scores from its sombre foli- 
age, catching rosy gleams of light from our lamps as we worked 
late into the night. These were — chopsticks, long glass chop- 
sticks, which I discovered in the bazaar ; and I am sure Santa 
Klaus himself could not have told them from icicles. Of course 
every present must be labelled with a child’s name, and here 
my troubles began. Ogita was told to make out a correct list 


68 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


of names and ages, with some reference to the calling of the 
parents ; for even here rank and precedence must be observed, 
or terrible heart-burnings might follow. The list came at last, 
and if it were not so long, I would send it to you complete, for 
it is a curiosity. Imagine such complicated titles as these : 
“ Minister’s second cook’s girl, Ume, age 2; Minister’s servant’s 
cousin’s boy, age 1 1 ; ” “ Student’s interpreter’s teacher’s girl ; ” 
“ Vice-Consul’s jinrikisha-man’s boy.” And so it went on, till 
there were fifty-eight of them of all ages, from one up to nine- 
teen. Some of them, indeed, w r ere less than a year old ; and I 
was amused on the evening of the 2d at having the list brought 
back to me with this note (Ogita’s English is still highly indi- 
vidual!) “Marked X is declined to the invitation.” On looking 
down the column, I found that ominous looking cross only 
against one name, that of Yasu, daughter of Ito Kanejiro, Mr. 

G ’s cook. This recalcitrant little person turned out to be 

six weeks old — an early age for parties even nowadays. Miss 
Yasu, having been born in November, was put down in the 
following January as two years old, after the puzzling Japanese 
fashion. Then I found that they would write boys as girls, 
girls as boys, grown-ups as babies, and so on. Even at the last 
moment a doll had to be turned into a sword, a toy tea-set into 
a work-box, a history of Europe into a rattle ; but people who 
grow Christmas trees are prepared for such small contingencies, 
and no one knew anything about it when on Friday afternoon 
the great tree slowly glowed into a pyramid of light, and a long 
procession of little Japs was marshalled in, with great solemnity 
and many bows, till they stood, a delighted, wide-eyed crowd, 



Copyright, 1908 , by Underwood & Underwood, New York 

MAKING GLASS AND TINSEL ORNAMENTS FOR CHRISTMAS TREES 












































































































































































































A CHRISTMAS TREE IN JAPAN 


69 


round the beautiful shining thing, the first Christmas tree any 
of them had ever seen. It was worth all the trouble to see the 
gasp of surprise and delight, the evident fear that the whole 
thing might be unreal and suddenly fade away. One little man 
of two fell flat on his back with amazement, tried to rise and 
have another look, and in so doing rolled over on his nose, 
where he lay quite silent till his relatives rescued him. Be- 
hind the children stood the mothers, quite as pleased as they, 
and with them one very old lady with a little child on her back. 

The children stood, the little ones in front and the taller 
ones behind, in a semicircle, and the many lights showed 
their bright faces and gorgeous costumes, for no one would 
be outdone by another in smartness — I fancy the poorer 
women had borrowed from richer neighbors — and the re- 
sult was picturesque in the extreme. The older girls had 
their heads beautifully dressed, with flowers and pins and 
rolls of scarlet crape knotted in between the coils ; their 
dresses were pale green or blue, with bright linings and stiff 
silk obis; but the little ones were a blaze of scarlet, green, 
geranium pink, and orange, their long sleeves sweeping the 
ground, and the huge flower patterns on their garments 
making them look like live flowers as they moved about on 
the dark velvet carpet. When they had gazed their fill, they 
were called up to me one by one, Ogita addressing them all 
as “ San ” (Miss or Mr.), even if they could only toddle, and 
I gave them their serious presents with their names, writ- 
ten in Japanese and English, tied on with red ribbon — an 
attention which, as I was afterwards told, they appreciated 


70 THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 

greatly. It seemed to me that they never would end; their 
size varied from a wee mite who could not carry its own 
toys to a tall, handsome student of sixteen, or a gorgeous 
young lady in green and mauve crape, and a head that 
must have taken the best part of the day to dress. 

In one thing they were all alike ; their manners were 
perfect. There was no pushing or grasping, no glances of 
envy at what other children received, no false shyness in 
their sweet, happy way of expressing their thanks. I was 
puzzled by one thing about the children : although we kept 
giving them sweets and oranges off the tree, every time I 
looked around the big circle all were empty-handed again, 
and it really seemed as if they must have swallowed the 
gifts, gold paper and ribbon and all. But at last I noticed 
that their square, hanging sleeves began to have a strange, 
lumpy appearance, like a conjurer’s waistcoat just before he 
produces twenty-four bowls of live goldfish from his internal 
economy; and then I understood that the plunder was at 
once dropped into these great sleeves, so as to leave hands 
free for anything else that Okusama might think good to 
bestow. One little lady, O’Haru San, aged three, got so 
overloaded with goodies and toys that they kept rolling out 
of her sleeves, to the great delight of the Brown Ambassa- 
dor dachshund, Tip, who pounced on them like lightning, 
and was also convicted of nibbling at cakes on the lower 
branches of the tree. 

The bigger children would not take second editions of 
presents, and answered, “ Honorable thanks, I have ! ” if 


A CHRISTMAS TREE IN JAPAN 


71 


offered more than they thought their share; but babies are 
babies all the world over ! When the distribution was fin- 
ished at last, I got a Japanese gentleman to tell them the 
story of Christmas, the children’s feast; and then they came 
up one by one to say “ Sayonara ” (“ Since it must be,” the 
Japanese farewell), and “ Arigato gozaimasu ” (“The honor- 
able thanks ” ). 

“Come back next year,” I said; and then the last pres- 
ents were given out — beautiful lanterns, red, lighted, and 
hung on what Ogita calls bumboos, to light the guests 
home with. One tiny maiden refused to go, and flung 
herself on the floor in a passion of weeping, saying that 
Okusama’s house was too beautiful to leave, and she would 
stay with me always — yes, she would ! Only the sight of the 
lighted lantern, bobbing on a stick twice as long as herself, 
persuaded her to return to her own home in the servants’ 
quarters. I stood on the step, the same step where I had set 
the fireflies free one warm night last summer, and watched 
the little people scatter over the lawns, and disappear into the 
dark shrubberies, their round, red lights dancing and shifting 
as they went, just as if my fireflies had come back, on red 
wings this time, to light my little friends to bed. 


72 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


From Far Away 

From far away we come to you. 

The snow in the street , and the wind on the door , 
To tell of great tidings, strange and true. 

Minstrels and maids , stand forth on the floor. 
From far away we come to you , 

To tell of great tidings , strange and true. 

For as we wandered far and wide, 

The snow in the street , and the wind on the door , 
What hap do you deem there should us betide? 
Minstrels and maids , stand forth on the floor . 

Under a bent when the night was deep, 

The snow in the street , and the wind on the door , 
There lay three shepherds, tending their sheep. 
Minstrels and maids , stand forth on the floor. 

“ O ye shepherds, what have ye seen, 

The snow in the street , and the wind on the door , 
To stay your sorrow and heal your teen?” 

Minstrels and maids , stand forth on the floor. 

“In an ox stall this night we saw, 

The snow in the street , and the wind on the door , 
A Babe and a maid without a flaw. 

Minstrels and maids , stand forth on the floor. 

“ There was an old man there beside ; 

The snow in the street , and the wind on the door, 











LORDINGS, LISTEN TO OUR LAY 


73 


His hair was white, and his hood was wide. 
Minstrels and maids , stand forth on the floor. 

“ And as we gazed this thing upon, 

The snow in the street , and the wind on the door ; 
Those twain knelt down to the little one. 

Minstrels and inaids , stand forth on the floor. 

“And a marvellous song we straight did hear, 

The snow in the street , and the wind on the door , 
That slew our sorrow and healed our care.” 

Minstrels and maids , stand forth on the floor. 

News of a fair and a marvellous thing, 

The snow in the street , and the wind on the door , 
Nowell, Nowell, Nowell, we sing. 

Minstrels and maids , stand forth on the floor. 
From far away we come to you , 

To tell of great tidings , strange and true. 

Lordings, listen to our Lay 

Lordings, listen to our lay — 

We have come from far away 
To seek Christmas; 

In this mansion we are told 
He his yearly feast doth hold: 

Tis to-day! 

May joy come from God above, 

To all those who Christmas love. 


74 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


Where the Christmas Toys Come From 

Almost all the wooden toys come from Germany, where 
peasants in the mountains of the Tyrol and Bavaria still 
make them by hand. A herd-boy on the hillside will see 
that his cattle are safely feeding in a narrow valley which 
they cannot leave without passing him, and then he will sit 
on the grass or on a rock and whittle and whistle or jodel 
as the soft wood shapes itself in his fingers, through a long 
summer day. And during the winter, while the snow lies 
deep on the mountain paths, entire families give their time 
to making Noah’s arks, toy villages with stiff little green 
trees, toy furniture, carved figures of all kinds. Anything 
which a man’s knife can make from poplar or plane wood 
is carved during the long weeks when outdoor work is 
impossible. At one time whole German villages used to 
work in their own homes on cheap wooden toys of all 
kinds. Nowadays, since the invention of the machines by 
which the simpler forms are made, most of the toy trades 
have been swept into the factories of German cities. 

Toy reins, such as you see with tinkling sleigh-bells on 
them, may be woven elsewhere in New England, but it is 
fairly certain that the bells at least were made in Connecti- 
cut, where the industry is a very old one, and where most 
of the sleigh-bells in the country have been made, as well 
as cow-bells and the tiny tinkler on the tea-table. And, natu- 
rally, the state in which are so many clock factories produces 
those toys which are made to go by a winding key. 


WHERE THE CHRISTMAS TOYS COME FROM 


75 


Hundreds of thousands of tin trumpets, and other toy 
musical instruments which used to be made in France and 
Germany, are now made in this country, mainly in Pennsyl- 
vania and New York. It is fascinating to watch the mak- 
ing of them by machinery. Pull a handle here! Click! 
down comes a frame and a long sheet of metal is cut into 
pieces of the exact shape wanted. See ! the frame on which 
the metal rested is a moving belt bringing a fresh sheet of 
metal under the stamps and at the same time carrying the 
cut pieces forward over a row of steel cones where a set of 
clamps like steel jaws catches each separate bit. The 
clamps close once, nip ! open, and each cone pushes forward 
with a jerk into another which with one motion adds a 
mouthpiece. What passes on now is a bent tube which 
needs only a touch of solder to keep it closed, a few rings 
of paint to make it gay, and perhaps a curved handle, to be 
a very presentable toy trumpet. 

Drums are almost all made in Massachusetts; marbles, 
the best of them, come from Saxony ; the old-fashioned 
kinds of music-boxes, some of them very elaborate and 
beautiful, still come from Switzerland. Glass ornaments 
for Christmas trees are made in Germany; many of the 
tinsel and cut-paper ornaments also come from Niiremburg 
and other German cities which are the great toy markets of 
the world. In one French village near Paris almost all the 
bone dominoes have been made for years ; another section 
of France turns out nearly all the bone chessmen — such 
figures as Alice found in the Looking-Glass country; and 


76 THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 

a quantity of the furry rabbits, silky-haired dogs, and woolly 
lambs on green-painted bellows which bleat ba-a-a , have been 
made by one Parisian family for many years. The old 
proprietor, his sons and daughters and even grandchildren, 
have lived and worked together at the very top of an old 
house in one of the side streets of the city, from a time 
beyond the memory of all but few. 

As for dolls — the making of a Christmas doll — that is 
another story. 

The Making of a Christmas Doll 

Does it seem to you that it would be a delightful 
business to make hundreds of thousands of dolls every year ? 
H’m ! Does this huge kettle of bad-smelling mush make 
you think of the dainty, smiling dolls in the toy-shop win- 
dow ? Dolly is made, though you would never guess it, 
of chopped up bits of old kid gloves and pieces of card- 
board boiled to a pulp in a gum made from the horns 
of goats. And here is a man shovelling sawdust into a 
kettle half full of boiling water. Now he is turning the 
mass into a big mixing trough, adding one shovelful after 
another of the gluey mush. The machinery creaks and 
turns and cuts and slaps as this mixture is kneaded into 
a composition pulp. Now he is carrying some of it in a 
hod, for all the world like sticky mortar, to a weighing 
table ! Sweep ! it is spread out in an even thickness. Clip ! 
down come the knives which part it into the right quanti- 



Copyright, 1908, by Underwood & Underwood, New York 


DOLL-MAKING 
























































































































































































































































































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THE MAKING OF A CHRISTMAS DOLL 


77 


ties, and it is swiftly pressed and moulded to the shape 
of a body, an arm, or a leg. In one factory alone the 
parts of as many as forty thousand dolls are thus made 
in one day, and the ugly, greenish shapes set aside to 
harden. Another day they pass quickly under the brushes 
in the painters’ hands after which they have the more familiar 
rosy pink color, and dolly can now be put together except 
for the head. 

Of these dolls the heads are to be of porcelain. Once 
for all, long ago, some artist made the model of which 
many duplicate moulds stand ready. Into these moulds 
liquid porcelain clay is poured; before it hardens the 
openings for the eyes are cut and tiny holes made by 
which it can be joined to a body. After the moulds are 
opened, as the rows and rows of little heads stand in metal 
trays, a painter comes by, covers them with a glaze-wash, 
tints the cheeks and outlines the brows and lashes. Now 
into the oven goes the tray for hours of slow baking. 
But even with the head sewed on we have but a sad-look- 
ing dolly, both blind and bald. 

If all goes well, the eyes and the wig come next. The 
eyes are not made in this factory at all. They come from 
Germany, and it would probably give you a queer, scared 
feeling to see the making of them. Look into this long, 
dark room, and when your eyes are a little used to the 
strange shadowiness, you will see that down its sides there 
are rows of tables, before each of which sits a woman 
with a blue-flame gas lamp in front of her. At little 


78 THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 

distances are retorts of glowing molten glass, and each 
woman dips her short glass tube into the melted glass, 
and, keeping it soft by the help of that weird blue flame of 
the blowpipe jet, blows a little oblong globe which she 
colors white for the eyeball, and then upon it paints a 
pupil of blue, brown, or black, as the doll-makers may 
have ordered. The musical click which you hear all the 
time is the sharp stroke which breaks the finished and 
cooled eye from the glass rod, letting it drop into a box 
lined with cotton by her side. This boy coming out has 
been collecting them, and it makes us shiver to see those 
hundreds of eyes rolling uncannily at us from the bottom 
of his basket. Come away! 

A wig for an inexpensive doll is an easy matter; the 
chosen strands of hair are laid along a double thread, which 
passes below one strand and above the next. This thread 
makes the “part,” and under it is stuck a bit of paste- 
board by which the wig is fastened on. A quick-fingered 
French woman can turn out over a hundred dozen such 
wigs in a day. And with the wig dolly is made at last. 

Her clothes, of course, are a separate matter, just as 
yours are; there are dolls’ shoemakers, and dolls’ dress- 
makers, and the elaborate completeness of dolly’s outfit 
depends only upon the price one is willing to pay. 







IRINA’S DAY ON THE ESTATES 


79 


Irinas Day on the Estates 

Irina is a Russian who answers promptly if you ask 
her what Christmas she remembers best, “ The one we 
spent on the estates.” But that may be because it was 
so unusual to be there at all in the winter. Christmas 
Eve is the great time in Russia, but Santa Claus does 
not come until evening and the day before Christmas 
being a fast-day is usually somewhat depressing. 

Old Mashinka, who comes in to open the heavy, outer 
shutters, usually has some lively gossip to tell while she 
lets in the light. Perhaps wolves slipped into the court- 
yard in the night and were fighting with the watch-dogs; 
perhaps the snow has fallen again and is so deep that Ivan 
and the stablemen have been out since daybreak cutting 
new paths to the kitchens, stables, and farm buildings, and 
breaking out the roads. Or perhaps Dmitri, who moved 
yesterday into a new house, took with him a cock and 
hen, and this morning the cock refused to crow at dawn 
so that all the family are sure that evil fortune will enter 
the house with the new year. But on this morning she 

has no news to tell; she moves silently and slowly, for it 

is a fast-day. 

Even Irina, who is always ready to run and jump, 

feels oppressed by the still, silent house. The dining 

room is desolate with its breakfastless table, usually so 
cosy with its steaming samovar. As a rule they are at 
this time in St. Petersburg where, though Irina stays qui- 


8o 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


etly all day in an upper room, except when attending church 
services, she can at least look out upon all the coming and 
going on the river and the Nevski Prospect. But this year 
Andrei the steward is raising questions about the plans 
and locations for new stables and barns, so they are here 
where everything is depressingly still and silent, and up- 
stairs her father and mother are praying in their rooms. 
So she puts on fur-lined boots, a long fur coat with deep 
collar, and a fur cap which comes well down over the fore- 
head, and once outside the house finds herself in the thick 
forest. Further on she comes to a frozen river, and fast- 
days and solemn services are all forgotten, for there are 
her two fur- wrapped brothers busy with a little sledge. 
The red scarves of the boys are taken for guiding reins, 
and far along the ice for two hours or more she drives 
her team. They have passed beyond the forest and out 
upon the steppes, where for miles ahead no trees are to be 
seen except where willows mark the curve of the river r or 
a few stunted saplings show black against the snow. On 
one side is a long, low sheepfold belonging to Irina’s father, 
and out comes the shepherd with a clamor of dogs. He 
has no chairs, so he throws down three heaps of clean straw 
for the children to sit on ; and he, too, forgets that it is a 
fast-day as he reaches cakes of dark brown bread from a 
shelf below the tiny square window, and pours for them 
cups of goats’ milk. Black crust and all — it goes quickly, 
and then they rest and stroke the half-tamed sheep that 
come to nibble the straw while the shepherd tells the children 






IRINA’S DAY ON THE ESTATES 81 

stories. He cannot read, to be sure, but when he was a 
boy his old grandmother told them to him. Perhaps, 
because it is the Christmas season, he tells them of 
the old woman whom the Russians call Babouscka and 
the Italians Befana. Irina’s favorite is one that would 
remind you of Cinderella, although the fairy godmother 
is much more like an old witch ; and as the children start 
off for home they wonder a little fearfully if this forest 
is not very like the one in the shepherd’s story. 

On arriving home they confess their sins — only the 
little matter of the rye bread is really forgotten. Every- 
body is busy ; the cook is getting the supper, and father 
in the drawing-room has the door locked. Some one has 
said there will be no Christmas tree, for there are no shops 
here; but why was mother away for four days, and why 
did that pedler who came by a few days ago stay so long? 
Irina finds a book, curls up on a rug, and tries to read, 
but she does not understand Kryloff’s “ Fables ” very well ; 
the day out-doors has made her drowsy and she does not 
quite know what becomes of the time until her brothers 
shake her a little, the clock rings out “ Cuckoo ” six times, 
and then open comes the door. There is a Christmas tree 
after all, a tall one with a shining star at the top. Hun- 
dreds of burning candles light it up, and tiny wax figures 
dance among hanging oranges. At the foot of the tree 
lie four or five heaps of parcels, — ah, then, mother was 
shopping; no one is forgotten and every one is merry. 
Then comes Pavel to say that supper is ready. But the 


82 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


white cloth looks very different from usual; it is not laid 
smoothly at all. Underneath it has been spread a layer 
of hay, and each one as he sits down pulls out a straw. 
Irina gives a cry of joy: her piece is quite complete, with 
its yellow, dried flower — which shows that she will be 
lucky all the next year. 

There is no meat at this Christmas Eve supper, only fish 
dishes and the special Kostya , or puddings which belong to 
the season very much as do mince pie and plum pudding in 
England. Of these puddings there are two kinds, — the white 
Kostya , made of rice, almonds, and raisins, and the black Kostya , 
made of honey, barley, and walnuts. 

During supper the children from the village school which 
Irina’s mother has started come and sing carols outside the 
window until Pavel with a handful of coins tells them to be off. 
Other young villagers follow to acknowledge their gifts with 
more singing. Lastly comes the church choir, who are invited 
in to supper after Irina and her brothers have returned to the 
tree and their new toys. For each there is a gift and from 
each a torrent of good wishes. 

This practice of carol singing is probably in its origin akin 
to the religious processions which one may see on any holy 
day in all the villages of Greece, the Balkan provinces, and up 
through Russia, — wherever, in fact, the Greek church has di- 
verted into the service of religion the old customs of the peo- 
ple. For centuries back and probably long before the Christian 
era, it was the practice of the young people here and elsewhere 
to gather into bands and go about the country roads at this 


A VISIT FROM ST. NICHOLAS 


83 

time of year singing hymns which were at first, no doubt, songs 
of rejoicing that the shortest days were over and the sun re- 
turning to the world again. Nowadays the songs are chants 
or carols, and the village boys are proud to carry in religious 
processions pictures of the saints and the banners of the church. 

A Visit from St. Nicholas 

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house 
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse; 

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, 

In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there; 

The children were nestled all snug in their beds, 

While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads; 

And mamma in her kerchief, and I in my cap, 

Had just settled our brains for a long winters nap — 

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter, 

I sprang from my bed to see what was the matter. 

Away to the window I flew like a flash, 

Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash. 

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow 
Gave a lustre of midday to objects below; 

When what to my wondering eyes should appear, 

But a miniature sleigh and eight tiny reindeer, 

With a little old driver so lively and quick 
I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick! 

More rapid than eagles his coursers they came, 

And he whistled and shouted, and called them by name: 


84 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


“Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen! 
On, Comet ! on, Cupid ! on, Donder and Blitzen ! 

To the top of the porch, to the top of the wall ! 

Now, dash away, dash away, dash away all ! ” 

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly, 

When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky, 

So up to the house-top the coursers they flew, 

With the sleigh full of toys — and St. Nicholas, too. 
And then in a twinkling I heard on the roof, 

The prancing and pawing of each little hoof. 

As I drew in my head, and turning around, 

Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound. 

He was dressed all in fur from his head to his foot, 
And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot; 
A bundle of toys he had flung on his back, 

And he looked like a pedler just opening his pack. 

His eyes, how they twinkled ! his dimples, how merry ! 
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry; 

His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow, 

And the beard on his chin was as white as the snow. 
The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth, 

And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath. 

He had a broad face and a little round belly 

That shook, when he laughed, like a bowl full of jelly. 

He was chubby and plump — a right jolly old elf; 

And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself. 

A wink of his eye and a twist of his head 
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread. 



Copyright by Underwood, & Underwood, New York 

A CHRISTMAS TREE AT THE IMMIGRANT STATION, NEW YORK 








THE CRATCHITS’ CHRISTMAS DINNER 


85 


He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work, 
And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk, 
And laying his finger aside of his nose, 

And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose. 

He sprang in his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle, 
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle; 
But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight: 

“ Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night ! ” 


The Cratchits’ Christmas Dinner 

You might have thought a goose the rarest of all birds; 
a feathered phenomenon, to which a black swan was a matter 
of course ; and in truth, it was something like it in that house. 
Mrs. Cratchit made the gravy (ready beforehand in a little 
saucepan) hissing hot; Master Peter mashed the potatoes with 
incredible vigor ; Miss Belinda sweetened up the apple sauce; 
Martha dusted the hot plates; Bob took Tiny Tim beside 
him in a tiny corner at the table; the two young Cratchits 
set chairs for everybody, not forgetting themselves, and mount- 
ing guard upon their posts, crammed spoons into their mouths, 
lest they should shriek for goose before their turn came to be 
helped. At last the dishes were set on, and grace was said. 
It was succeeded by a breathless pause, as Mrs. Cratchit, 
looking slowly all along the carving knife, prepared to plunge 
it in the breast ; but when she did, and when the long-expected 
gush of stuffing issued forth, one murmur of delight arose all 
around the board, and even Tiny Tim, excited by the two 


86 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


young Cratchits, beat on the table with the handle of his 
knife, and feebly cried Hurrah! 

There never was such a goose. Bob said he didn’t believe 
there ever was such a goose cooked. Its tenderness and 
flavor, size and cheapness, were the themes of universal admira- 
tion. Eked out by the apple sauce and mashed potatoes, it 
was a sufficient dinner for the whole family; indeed, as Mrs. 
Cratchit said with great delight (surveying one small atom 
of a bone on the dish), they hadn’t ate it all at last! Yet 
every one had had enough, and the youngest Cratchits in 
particular were steeped in sage and onion to the eyebrows ! 
But now, the plates being changed by Miss Belinda, Mrs. 
Cratchit left the room alone — too nervous to bear witnesses 
— to take the pudding up and bring it in. 

Suppose it should not be done enough ! Suppose it should 
break in turning out! Suppose somebody should have got 
over the wall of the back yard, and stolen it, while they were 
merry with the goose; a supposition at which the two young 
Cratchits became livid ! All sorts of horrors were supposed. 

Hallo ! A great deal of steam ! The pudding was out 
of the copper. A smell like a washing-day! That was the 
cloth. A smell like an eating-house and a pastry cook’s next 
door to each other, with a laundress next door to that ! That 
was the pudding. In half a minute Mrs. Cratchit entered, 
flushed, but smiling proudly, with the pudding like a speckled 
cannon-ball, so hard and firm, blazing in half of half-a-quartern 
of ignited brandy, and bedight with Christmas holly stuck into 
the top. 


THE CRATCHITS’ CHRISTMAS DINNER 


87 


Oh, a wonderful pudding! Bob Cratchit said, and calmly, 
too, that he regarded it as the greatest success achieved by 
Mrs. Cratchit since their marriage. Mrs. Cratchit said that 
now the weight was off her mind she would confess she had 
had her doubts about the quantity of flour. Everybody had 
something to say about it, but nobody said or thought it was 
at all a small pudding for so large a family. It would have 
been flat heresy to do so. Any Cratchit would have blushed 
to hint at such a thing. At last the dinner was all done, 
the cloth was cleared, the hearth swept, and the fire made up. 
The compound in the jug being tasted and considered perfect, 
apples and oranges were put upon the table, and a shovelful 
of chestnuts on the fire. Then all the Cratchit family drew 
round the hearth in what Bob Cratchit called a circle, mean- 
ing half a one; and at Bob Cratchit’s elbow stood the family 
display of glass — two tumblers and a custard-cup without a 
handle. 

These held the hot stuff from the jug, however, as well 
as golden goblets would have done; and Bob served it out 
with beaming looks, while the chestnuts on the fire sputtered 
and cracked noisily. Then Bob proposed: 

“ A merry Christmas to all, my dears. God bless us ! ” 

Which all the family reechoed. 

“God bless us every one!” said Tiny Tim the last of all. 



88 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


After the Christmas Dinner 

When dinner had had time to settle and all the kitchen 
work was done, Father took his seat at the end of the long 
table, with all the household gathered about, the servants in- 
cluded and the baby without fail, and read the story of The 
Child : “ And it came to pass in those days,” while Mother 
hushed the baby. Then we sang together “ A Child is Born 
in Bethlehem,” which was the simplest of our hymns, and 
also the one we children loved best, for it told of how in 
heaven we were to walk to church 

“ On sky-blue carpets, star-bedeckt,” 

which was a great comfort. Children love beautiful things, 
and we had few of them. The great and precious treasure in 
our house was the rag carpet in the spare room, which we were 
allowed to enter only on festive occasions such as Christmas. 
It had an orange streak in it which I can see to this day. 
Whenever I come across one that even remotely suggests it, 
it gives me yet a kind of solemn feeling. We had no piano, 
— that was a luxury in those days, — and Father was not a 
singer, but he led on bravely with his tremulous bass and we 
all joined in, Ane the cook and Maria the housemaid furtively 
wiping their eyes with their aprons, for they were good and 
pious folk and this was their Christmas service. So we sang 
the ten verses to end, with their refrain “ Flallelujah ! halle- 
lujah ! ” that always seemed to me to open the very gates of 
Yule. 



WE JOINED HANDS AND DANCED AROUND THE TREE 













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HANG UP THE BABY’S STOCKING 


89 


And it did, literally ; for when the last hallelujah died away, 
the door of the spare room was flung wide and there stood the 
Christmas tree, all shining lights, and the baby was borne in, 
wide-eyed, to be the first, as was proper ; for was not this The 
Child’s holiday? Unconsciously we all gave way to those who 
were nearest Him, who had most recently come from His pres- 
ence, and were therefore in closest touch with the spirit of the 
holiday. So, when we joined hands and danced around the 
tree, Father held the baby; and we laughed and were happy 
as the little one crowed his joy and stretched the tiny arms 
toward the light. 

Hang up the Baby’s Stocking 

Hang up the baby’s stocking: 

Be sure you don’t forget; 

The dear little dimpled darling ! 

She ne’er saw Christmas yet; 

But I’ve told her all about it, 

And she opened her big blue eyes; 

And I’m sure she understood it — 

She looked so funny and wise. 

Dear! what a tiny stocking! 

It doesn’t take much to hold 

Such little pink toes as baby’s 
Away from the frost and cold; 

But then for the baby’s Christmas 
It will never do at all ; 


90 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


Why, Santa wouldn’t be looking 
For anything half so small. 

I know what will do for the baby. 

Fve thought of the very best plan: 

I’ll borrow a stocking of grandma, 

The longest that ever I can; 

And you’ll hang it by mine, dear mother, 

Right here in the corner, so ! 

And write a letter to Santa, 

And fasten it on the toe. 

Write, “This is the baby’s stocking 
That hangs in the corner here; 

You never have seen her, Santa, 

For she only came this year; 

But she’s just the blessedest baby! 

And now before you go, 

Just cram her stocking with goodies, 

From the top clean down to the toe.” 

A German Christmas 

In Germany a little girl begins to think about Christmas 
almost as soon as she gets back from a summer holiday, for it 
is still very much the custom there to make something your- 
self for those you love best, and German girls learn while they 
are still little to embroider beautifully all kinds of articles for 
household use, — a monogram on a fine handkerchief, or spray 


A GERMAN CHRISTMAS 


9i 


of flowers on a bit of linen to wear at the neck. An older girl 
makes such things as a canvas traveller’s-case, or a set of shoe- 
bags, embroiders a sofa-cushion or knits a silk necktie. 
Mothers and aunts are more likely to make soberly useful gifts 
of stockings, underclothing, dresses ; nothing is thought out-of- 
place. But every one must give to every one else. That is law. 
And every one aims to keep as a secret what she is making ; it 
must be hidden at least from the one for whom it is intended, 
so there is quite an air of “ I know something nice, but I can- 
not tell it,” about a German household through all the weeks 
before the holiday. 

About a fortnight before Christmas the fair begins which 
Mrs. Sidgwick tells us is to be seen “ in any one of the old Ger- 
man cities in the hill country, when the streets and the open 
places are covered with crisp clean snow, and the mountains are 
white with it, and the moon shines on the ancient houses, and 
the tinkle of sledge bells reaches you when you escape from 
the din of the market, and look down at the bustle of it from 
some silent place, a high window, perhaps, or the high empty steps 
leading into the cathedral. The air is cold and still, and heavy 
with the scent of the Christmas trees brought from the forest 
for the pleasure of the children. Day by day you see the rows 
of them growing thinner, and if you go to the market on Christ- 
mas Eve itself you will find only a few trees left out in the 
cold. The market is empty, the peasants are harnessing their 
horses or their oxen, the women are packing up their unsold 
goods. In every home in the city one of the trees that scented 
the open air about a week ago is shining now with lights and 


92 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


little gilded nuts and apples, and is helping to make that Christ- 
mas smell, all compact of the pine forest, wax candles, cakes, 
and painted toys, you must associate so long as you live with 
Christmas in Germany.” 

We have Christmas trees in plenty, but to the German 
mind we have them all wrong. In the first place, their trees are 
small, and every one, from the Emperor down to the poorest la- 
borer, has a tree. But he has it at home, on Christmas Eve if 
he can, less often on Christmas Day, and only sometimes on the 
day after, which they call the Second Christmas Day. A Ger- 
man family never invites a party to its Christmas tree, only 
relatives or intimate friends. As a rule, there is one tree, fixed 
on a small stand in the centre of a large square table covered 
with a snow-white cloth, and around the tree the presents are 
arranged, those for each person in a separate pile. The tree is 
lighted for beauty, and is decorated with ornaments of glass 
and tinsel, sweetmeats, apples, gilded nuts, and a few very 
small toys. Some of the sweetmeats made for German trees 
are very elaborate. There are Kringeln , transparent sugar 
candies twisted in figure eights or circles, so that they easily 
hang on. There are sugar candy animalsof every shape and color; 
and here and there a fascinating scene in colored sugar on a 
white background, a sportsman in a red coat, perhaps, pointing 
his gun at an enormous rabbit that sits up almost touching the 
end of the gun-barrel. The celebrated Lubecker Marzipan (a 
kind of almond paste which you have tasted, maybe, on bride- 
cake) imitates all kinds of fruit and vegetables so well that they 
can easily be mistaken for real. 



Copyright by Underwood & Underwood, New York 

DRESSING DOLLS IN GERMANY FOR AMERICAN CHRISTMAS TREES 









A GERMAN CHRISTMAS 


93 

The trees are set in the front rooms and the curtains 
are drawn up to give any passer-by a glimpse of their 
beauty. The family gathers in the room behind, sometimes 
a carol or hymn is sung, and at its end suddenly the parlor 
doors fly back, showing the little green tree all alight and 
the piles of presents for every one. Then comes a scramble 
and search for ones own pile, — a long silence while parcels 
are opened breathlessly. Such a handshaking and embracing 
and thanking as follows ! 

In some families where there are several children and 
plenty of money, each person may have a tree of his own, 
and at any rate will have his own table covered with presents 
and things to eat. Of such a family the mother writes : — 

Every time the three babies go into the garden they 
expect to meet the Christ Child with His arms full of gifts. 
They firmly believe that it is thus their presents are brought, 
and it is such a charming idea that Christmas would be 
worth celebrating for its sake alone. 

The library is uninhabitable- for several days before and 
after, as it is there that we have the trees and presents. 
All down one side are the trees, and the other three sides 
are lined with tables, a separate one for each person 
in the house. When trees are lighted, and stand in their 
radiance shining down on the happy faces, I forget all the 
trouble it has been, and the number of times I have had 
to run up and down stairs, and the various aches in head 
and feet, and enjoy myself as much as anybody. First the 
June baby is ushered in, then the others and ourselves 


94 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


according to age, then the servants, then come the head 
inspector and his family, and other inspectors from the different 
farms, the mamsells, the bookkeepers and secretaries, and then 
all the children, troops and troops of them — the big ones 
leading the little ones by the hand and carrying the babies 
in their arms, and the mothers peeping round the door. As 
many as can get in stand in front of the trees, and sing two or 
three carols ; then they are given their presents, and go off 
triumphantly, making room for the next batch. My three 
babies sung lustily, too, whether they happened to know what 
was being sung or not. . . . 

When they came to say good night they were all very pale 
and subdued. The April baby had an exhausted-looking 
Japanese doll with her, which she said she was taking to bed, 
not because she liked him, but she was so sorry for him, he 
seemed so very tired. They kissed me absently, and went 
away, only the April baby glancing at the trees as she passed 
and making them a courtesy. 

“ Good-by, trees,” I heard her say ; and then she made the 
Japanese doll bow to them, which he did, in a very languid and 
blase fashion. “You’ll never see such trees again,” she told 
him, giving him a vindictive shake, “ for you’ll be brokened long 
before next time.” 

She went out, but came back as though she had forgotten 
something. 

“Thank the Christkind so much, Mummy, won’t you, for 
all the lovely things He brought us. I suppose you’re writing 
to Him now, isn’t you ? ” 


CROWDED OUT 


95 


Crowded Out 

Nobody ain’t Christmas shoppin’ 

Fur his stockin’, 

Nobody ain’t cotch no turkey, 

Nobody ain’t bake no pie. 

Nobody’s laid nuthin’ by; 

Santa Claus don’t cut no figger 
Fur his mammy’s little nigger. 

Seems lak everybody’s rushin’ 

An’ er crushin’ ; 

Crowdin’ shops an’ jammin’ trolleys, 
Buyin’ shoes an’ shirts an’ toys 
Fur de white folks’ girls an’ boys; 

But no hobby-horse ain’t rockin’ 

Fur his little wore-out stockin’. 

He ain’t quar’lin’, recollec’, 

He don’t spec 

Nuthin’ — it’s his not expectin’ 

Makes his mammy wish — O Laws ! — 
Fur er nigger Santy Claus, 

Totin’ jus’ er toy balloon 
Fur his mammy’s little coon. 


9 6 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


An English “ Adoration” 

Art in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries was far more 
closely connected with the church than it is to-day. The most 
beautiful buildings were those of the church, and the art of 
painting was soon called upon for their decoration. Books at 
that time were rare and costly, and the stories of the saints 
whose “ holydays ” were times of festivity for the people, were 
mostly handed down by word of mouth, and often with 
a good deal of confusion of times and people. And natur- 
ally, when the rich men of 1300 called in a workman to 
decorate a church or to paint a panel which could be moved 
from one building to another, they liked to see on their 
walls pictures of their favorite saints and heroes, pictures 
which reminded them of the stories they could not read. It 
made no difference to them if saint and hero and king lived 
hundreds of years apart. 

There is one such picture, one of the oldest in Eng- 
land, so old that no one knows who painted it, which is 
interesting because it is so easy to see that the king who 
ordered it painted was thinking of the old Christmas story 
of the Adoration of the Magi, who were always thought 
of in the Middle Ages as being kings. The picture is 
painted on two wooden panels, joined with hinges so that 
it can be closed, and is in bright colors against a back- 
ground of gold. 

The English king who probably ordered it to celebrate 
his coronation was Richard II. of England, son of the 













AN ENGLISH “ADORATION 


97 


famous Black Prince. One likes to think that although he 
thought of himself as one of a long line of kings ruling 
by divine right, whom it was natural to see surrounded by 
persons royal and divine, yet he wished to be painted not 
in the act of receiving but of giving homage. After all, in 
spite of the kings crown and the robe of state, too big for a 
child’s figure, he was only a boy barely eleven, and whatever 
he became later here he is shown offering his kingdom to the 
Holy Child in His Mother’s arms. 

There was a special reason for Richard’s having his pic- 
ture resemble pictures of the Adoration of the Magi for the 
Day of the Kings, January 6, was not only his own birth- 
day, but also the day upon which he was crowned. And an 
account of his coronation tells us that after the ceremony he 
made an offering at the Shrine of Our Lady at Pewe, nearby, 
of “ eleven angels,” one for each year of his young life. Ex- 
actly what these eleven angels were no one now knows ; 
they may have been gold coins with an angel stamped upon 
them, or they may have been small images. But perhaps he 
remembered his eleven years and this offering when he told 
the painter to surround Mother Mary with the eleven an- 
gels in sapphire blue whom you see in the picture. One 
sees at least that they are his angels, for each wears his 
special badge, the Jewel of the White Hart, and the Collar 
of Broom-pods. Almost all the Magi pictures represent one 
of the kings as kneeling, with the two others standing be- 
hind him, and one can imagine Richard boyishly choosing 
the other two kings. He was crowned in Westminster Ab- 

H 


9 8 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


bey, so it is natural enough that one of them should be 
Edward the Confessor who founded the Abbey; the other, 
holding an arrow, is St. Edmund, an early king of England 
who is said to have been shot to death with arrows by the 
Danes, because he refused to abandon Christianity. Joseph, 
too, is a customary figure in paintings of the Adoration, but 
cannot you hear the boy king saying, “No, I do not want 
St. Joseph; my father died in midsummer so I really be- 
came king about the time of St. John’s Day, if I am 
crowned at Epiphany; so I will have St. John with a 
lamb and Edward the Confessor ; and Edward shall hold a 
ring?” There is a pretty story that St. John the Evangelist, 
wandering in the disguise of a beggar, asked alms of King 
Edward the Confessor; and, that the king, rather than refuse 
a poor man, gave him a ring from his finger, because he 
had no money with him. And it would be so like a boy 
not to care that the two St. Johns were not at all the same. 
That which mattered is that one of the angels was holding 
toward the Holy Child’s reaching hands the banner of Eng- 
land as the gift of the kneeling boy. 



THE CHILDREN’S OWN SAINT 


99 


The Children’s Own Saint 

What a most convenient thing it is that good St. Nicholas 
does not have to keep the Christmas holiday in all the world 
at once! He has been the childrens own saint, you know, 
ever since he ceased to be a bishop in far-away Asia Minor. 
The oldest story we hear of him is that once three little boys 
on their way to school at Athens stopped over night at an 
inn, of which the innkeeper was also a butcher, and a robber 
besides. This wicked man killed the boys in the night and 
threw their bodies into his salting tub. But the very next 
morning the saint walked in and asked for them, for though he 
was only Bishop Nicholas then, he knew all about it in some 
wonderful way. The trembling butcher took him out to the 
pork barrel ; the saint struck the edge of it sharply with his 
staff and called the boys by name. Out jumped the three little 
pickles all alive, and of course the wicked butcher was punished 
and Nicholas became the school-boys’ saint. 

There is also a story that one night Bishop Nicholas wished 
to carry a purse of gold to a worthy nobleman who was so 
proud and so unwilling to have his poverty noticed that it was 
a difficult matter to make the gift without hurting his feelings. 
When the house was reached the old noble was to be seen 
through the window fast asleep by the fire, and without disturb- 
ing him good St. Nicholas climbed to the top of the wide chim- 
ney and dropped the purse, intending it to fall on the hearth. 
But as the old man’s daughter had hung her father’s stockings 
by the fire to dry, it chanced to fall into one of them. There it 


IOO 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


was found the next day and most opportunely provided a 
marriage portion for the oldest daughter. The story goes on 
to say that after that whenever one of the noble’s daughters 
was of marrying age he hung up a stocking, — and St. Nicho- 
las’s gift was never lacking. 

They say that all this happened early in December, and in 
some countries December 6 is the great day for the children. 
In Holland, on St. Nicholas Eve, December 5, the children go 
out with their parents to see the brilliantly decorated shops, 
and in the doorways of many of them stands the saint, gor- 
geously dressed and handing to every child who passes a tiny 
toy or a sweet. No wonder the good saint must needs go to 
the seashore for a day before his next heavy job of being 
Santa Claus to all America on the twenty-fifth, — to say noth- 
ing of merry England ! 

At any rate, we find that in a certain seaport of southern 
Italy it is the sailors’ custom on December 6 to take the im- 
age of the saint from the beautiful church of St. Nicholas 
and, with a long procession of boats, carry it far out to Sea. 
Toward nightfall they return and in the glory of the gold and 
crimson sunset are met on landing by all the townspeople. 
Hundreds of quaintly dressed pilgrims from the country round 
join the crowd that welcomes the home-coming saint with songs, 
bonfires, and torches, and brings him back to his own place. 

His next appearance is in those countries where the Greek 
Church is the national religion. Their Day of St. Nicholas, 
which is December 6 elsewhere, comes upon what we should 
call December 19, and the saint is supposed to bring the win- 



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THE CHILDREN’S OWN SAINT 


IOI 


ter with him. On the frozen river by Peter’s city it is cele- 
brated with a skating and sleighing carnival. Lines of track 
are laid down on the ice like small-sized street-car lines. Tiny 
cars run here and there along them, back and forth from the 
smooth ice-fields roped off for sleigh races or skating contests. 
Perhaps it was in that cold country he found the high cap, the 
furs, and the coat he wears for his hard work of chimney 
scrambling and running the reindeer express on the Christmas 
Eve we know. 

Once more after his strenuous American holiday week is 
over the hard-worked saint appears again. From the little 
whitewashed villages of Greece north to ice-bound Archangel 
and east even to Vladivostok the saint swings wearily on thou- 
sands of wax-lighted Christmas trees (their Christmas Eve 
comes, you must remember, thirteen days after ours). But 
he is a sadly wasted saint by this time — a mere waxen image 
a few inches long — able only to dance a little at the tip of a 
branch of a Christmas tree, and that is all he is asked to do. 
But in some houses you would find him with a queer cotton 
tassel in the top of his cap, and what happens then is this : 
some boy or girl comes by, touches his cotton tassel into flame 
from a lighted taper, and he burns and melts and grows shorter 
as if he were just an ordinary wax candle until he is all gone. 

But in spite of that, in the next December, when the little 
children in Holland beg their mothers to take them out to see 
the lighted shops, there he is again with his bag of sweets. 
And if you want to know what happens to him after that you 
will only have to read this story over again. 


102 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


The Befana Fair in Rome 

In Rome the season of making gifts corresponding to our 
Christmas comes twelve days later, and the gift-bringer would 
not be called Santa Claus or Saint Nicholas, but Befana, a 
gruff little old woman. Perhaps she is in some way connected 
with the old woman of whom the legend is told that she was 
sweeping out her house when the Three Kings rode by with 
gifts for the infant Christ. “ Come,” they said, “ and see the 
Bambin Gesu She said she would when she had finished 
her sweeping. But though she took her gifts and started, she 
was too late then, of course, so she gave the presents to good 
children and bits of charcoal to those who had been naughty. 
The name is really a short form of Epifania, the Feast of 
Epiphany, and it is given both to the gift-bringer and to one 
of the most extraordinary popular festivals ever invented to 
amuse children and to turn grown people into children. It is 
a night fair opened every Eve of Epiphany in the great square 
called Piazza Navona, where long, long ago one of the Roman 
emperors, Domitian, once had his race-course. In the days 
just after Christmas workmen begin to bring out from queer 
underground storerooms all the lumber and other material 
needed for setting up booths and decorating the square for 
the Befana. From year to year it lies somewhere, ready for 
use at a moments notice, and when needed it is suddenly pro- 
duced without confusion, marked and numbered, all ready to 
be put together and regilded, or repainted, or hung with acres 
of bright-colored draperies. The Romans are masters of the 


THE BEFANA FAIR IN ROME 


103 


art of managing public displays and change the empty, windy 
square as if by magic suddenly into a great oval street of 
booths enclosing the whole circus-shaped space. At dark on 
the Eve of the Epiphany the Befana begins. The hundreds 
of booths are choked with toys, and gleam with thousands of 
little lights. In the open spaces the moving crowd of children, 
parents, and grandparents grows closer and closer between 
sunset and midnight, and every one is splitting the air with 
some sort of whistle, horn, or trumpet. Noise is the chief 
need of a successful Befana, and the first thing every one buys 
who comes must be a tin horn or one of the grotesque little 
figures made of painted clay, always with a whistle in some 
part of it. Their very ugliness is attractive, and they are 
daubed with a kind of bright and harmless paint of which 
every Roman child remembers the taste so long as he lives. 
Round and round the crowd moves in a stream of young, old, 
and middle-aged, all blowing horns and whistles with a ridicu- 
lously solemn persistency, bent on making all the noise it is 
possible to get out of one small toy. Now and then they stop 
to buy at some booth, or to greet a friend ; one group attacks 
another with a specially strong burst of noise almost too much 
to stand when shrill whistles are brought close to ears, and 
there are shouts of laughter when the party which can make 
the most hideous noise drives off the other half deaf from the 
din. 

In one long-remembered year, in the old English Protes- 
tant church about a mile away, the organ was rebuilt and the 
organist, a practical Anglo-Saxon, had the useless old pipes 


104 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


sold at the night fair for the benefit of the church. The bray- 
ing of the high cracked reeds was frightful and never to be 
forgotten. 

Thousands upon thousands of people throng the square; 
even under the clear winter sky it is not cold ; the flaring, 
smoking, wind-blown torches throw strange shadows down 
upon the old women who behind the booths sit warming their 
skinny hands over earthen pots of glowing coals. They look 
on without a smile on their wrinkled faces while their sons 
and daughters sell littLe old women of clay, the very images 
of their mothers, to passing customers. And there is no con- 
fusion, no accident, no trouble, there are no drunken men and 
no pickpockets. But Romans are not like other people. 

The Golden Carol 

(Of Melchior, Balthazar, and Gaspar, the Three Kings.) 

We saw the light shine out a-far, 

On Christmas in the morning, 

And straight we knew Christ’s Star it was, 

Bright beaming in the morning. 

Then did we fall on bended knee, 

On Christmas in the morning, 

And prais’d the Lord, who’d let us see 
His glory at its dawning. 

Oh! ever thought be of His Name, 

On Christmas in the morning, 








BABOUSCKA 


105 

Who bore for us both grief and shame, 

Afflictions sharpest scorning. 

And may we die (when death shall come), 

On Christmas in the morning, 

And see in heav’n, our glorious home, 

The Star of Christmas morning. 


Babouscka 

It was the night the dear Christ Child came to Bethle- 
hem. In a country far away from Him, an old, old woman 
named Babouscka sat in her snug little house by her warm 
fire. The wind was drifting the snow outside and howling 
down the chimney, but it only made Babouscka’s fire burn 
more brightly. 

“ How glad I am that I may stay indoors ! ” said Babouscka, 
holding her hands out to the bright blaze. 

But suddenly she heard a loud rap at her door. She 
opened it, and her candle shone on three old men standing 
outside in the snow. Their beards were as white as the snow, 
and so long that they reached the ground. Their eyes shone 
kindly in the light of Babouscka’s candle, and their arms were 
full of precious things — boxes of jewels, and sweet-smelling 
oils, and ointments. 

“ We have travelled far, Babouscka,” they said, “ and we stop 
to tell you of the Baby Prince born this night in Bethlehem. 
He comes to rule the world and teach all men to be loving and 
true. We carry Him gifts. Come with us, Babouscka ! ” 


106 THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 

But Babouscka looked at the driving snow, and then inside 
at her cozy room and the crackling fire. “It is too late for me 
to go with you, good sirs,” she said, “ the weather is too cold.” 
She went inside again and shut the door, and the old men 
journeyed on to Bethlehem without her. But as Babouscka 
sat by her fire, rocking, she began to think about the little 
Christ Child, for she loved all babies. 

“To-morrow I will go to find Him,” she said; “to-morrow, 
when it is light, and I will carry Him some toys.” 

So when it was morning Babouscka put on her long cloak, 
and took her staff, and filled her basket with the pretty things 
a baby would like, gold balls, and wooden toys, and strings of 
silver cobwebs — and she set out to find the Christ Child. 

But, oh ! Babouscka had forgotten to ask the three old 
men the road to Bethlehem, and they had travelled so far 
through the night that she could not overtake them. Up and 
down the roads she hurried, through woods and fields and 
towns, saying to whomsoever she met: “I go to find the 
Christ Child. Where does He lie? I bring some pretty toys 
for His sake.” 

But no one could tell her the way to go, and they all said, 
“ Farther on, Babouscka, farther on.” So she travelled on, and 
on, and on for years and years — but she never found the little 
Christ Child. 

They say that old Babouscka is travelling still, looking for 
Him. When it comes Christmas Eve, and the children are 
lying fast asleep, Babouscka comes softly through the snowy 
fields and towns, wrapped in her long cloak and carrying her 


THE THREE KINGS 


107 


basket on her arm. With her staff she raps gently at the 
doors and goes inside and holds her candle close to the little 
children’s faces. 

“ Is He here? ” she asks. “ Is the little Christ Child here? ” 
And then she turns sorrowfully away again, crying, “ Farther 
on, farther on.” But before she leaves she takes a toy from 
her basket and lays it beside the pillow for a Christmas gift. 
“ For His sake,” she says softly and then hurries on through 
the years and forever in search of the little Christ Child. 

The Three Kings 

If you had been a child in Provence when Mistral was a 
boy, you might perhaps have joined the excited party of curly- 
headed boys and fair-haired girls in hoods and clacking wooden 
shoes who went with him to meet the Three Kings, the Wise 
Men from the East, coming to worship the Holy Child on the 
night before Epiphany. Mistral told of it long afterwards in 
this way: — 

With hearts beating and eyes bright we started forth on 
the road to Arles, bearing our gifts of welcome, cakes for the 
Kings, figs for the boy pages, sweet hay for the tired camels. 
The wind blew cold, the robin and wren hopped shivering in 
the branches of the leafless trees. The fields were empty 
except for perhaps an old woman picking up sticks, or a ragged 
snail-gatherer under the hedge. 

“ Where are you going so late, my little ones ? ” some one 
would ask. 


108 THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 

“We go to meet the Kings,” we said, singing and laughing, 
sliding and running along the white, wind-swept road. But 
the daylight faded, the black, pointed cypress trees hid the bell- 
tower of Maillane, and the long, white road stretched away 
empty. . . . Then we met a shepherd, his long, brown cloak 
held tight around him. 

“ Have you seen the Kings ? Are they still a long way off ? ” 

“Ah! the Kings! You should see them soon. They are 
not so far away.” 

Then we set off running again, with our gifts for the Kings 
and the pages, and handfuls of hay for the camels. The brav- 
est of us flagged a little as a great cloud over the mountain 
hid the sun, when suddenly a flash of golden splendor and 
a glory of yellow and crimson shone just where the white road 
curved from behind the mountain. 

“The Kings! The Kings! See their mantles! See the 
banners ! They are coming.” 

And so we stood amazed ; but instead of growing brighter 
as if the Kings were coming nearer, the glory faded with the 
sunset and we found ourselves alone in the dark highway. 

“ Which way did the Kings go ? ” 

“They have gone behind the mountain.” 

The white owls hooted, the wind was chill, and night- 
shadows frightened us ; so close together with backward 
glances we hurried toward the village again. The hay we 
threw away, but the cakes we had brought to give the Kings 
and the figs for the boy pages — they were comforting. And 
at home our mothers asked us: “Well, did you see them?” 














































































































/ 

























































































































































































* 



















































































THE THREE KINGS 


109 

“Only a long way off. They went behind the mountain.” 

“ But what road did you take ? ” 

“ The road to Arles.” 

“ Ah, my poor lambs — but the Kings never come by that 
road. They come from the East — you should have taken the 
Roman road. Ah, the beautiful sight when they entered Mail- 
lane 1 the banners and trumpets ! the pages leading the camels ! 
But what a show! Now they are gone to the church to offer 
their adoration. After supper you shall go and see them.” 

Suppers were swallowed quickly, mine at my grandmothers, 
and then we all ran to the church. Sure enough, high above 
the manger hung the glittering star, and on bended knees 
before the Holy Child were the Three Kings — Gaspard, in a 
crimson cloak, with gifts of gold ; Melchior, in yellow, offering 
incense; and Balthasar, in a mantle blue, presenting a vase of 
myrrh. How reverently we admired the gayly dressed pages 
who carried the Kings’ long trains, and the great camels whose 
heads and humps rose high above St. Joseph’s ass and the 
oxen! ... 

Many a time since those days I have been on the Arles 
road at this season when the robin and wren haunt the haw- 
thorne hedges. The snail-gatherer still searches under the 
hedge and the owls hoot in the winter evening. But I see no 
more in the glory of the sunset clouds the banners of the 
Kings. 

“ Which way did they go, the Kings ? ” 

“ Behind the mountain.” 


IIO 


THE CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CHRISTMAS 


Christmas Peace 

That sweetly prophetic evening silence, before the great 
feast of Good-Will, does not come over everything each year, 
even in a lonely cottage on an abandoned farm in Connecticut, 
than which you cannot possibly imagine anything more silent 
or more remote from the noise of the world. Sometimes it 
rains in torrents just on that night, sometimes it blows a 
raging gale that twists the leafless birches and elms and 
hickory trees like dry grass and bends the dark firs and 
spruces as if they were feathers, and you can hardly be heard 
unless you shout, for the howling and screaming and whistling 
of the blast. 

But now and then, once in four or five years perhaps, the 
feathery snow lies a foot deep, fresh-fallen, on the still country 
side and in the woods ; and the waxing moon sheds her large 
light on all, and Nature holds her breath to wait for the happy 
day and tries to sleep, but cannot from sheer happiness and 
peace. Indoors, the fire is glowing on the wide hearth, a great 
bed of coals that will last all night and be enough, because it is 
not bitter weather, but only cold and clear and still, as it should 
be ; or if there is only a poor stove, the iron door is open and 
a comfortable, cheery red light shines out from within upon the 
battered iron plate and the wooden floor beyond ; and the older 
people sit around it, not saying much, and thinking with their 
hearts rather than with their heads ; but small boys and girls 
know that interesting things have been happening in the 
kitchen all the afternoon, and are rather glad that the supper 


CHRISTMAS PEACE 


hi 


was not very good, because there will be more room for good 
things to-morrow ; and the grown-ups and the children have 
made up any little differences of opinion they may have had 
before supper time, because Good-Will must reign, and reign 
alone, like Alexander ; so that there is nothing at all to regret, 
and nothing hurts anybody any more, and they are all happy 
in just waiting for King Christmas to open the door softly and 
make them all great people in his kingdom. But if it is the 
right sort of house, he is already looking in through the win- 
dow, to be sure that every one is all ready for him, and that 
nothing has been forgotten. 




'“jpHE following pages contain advertisements of a 
few of the Macmillan books for children 





























































































































































































































































































































































































































































































THE CHILDREN’S PLEASURE BOOK SERIES 


CHILDREN’S BOOK OF ART 

By Miss A. E. Conway and Sir Martin 
Conway. 

With 1 6 full-page illustrations in color 
from public and private galleries. 

Dec. cloth, i2mo, $2.00 net; by mail$2.i5. 

An entertaining and attractive volume. The paint- 
ings reproduced have been chosen because of their 
undoubted appeal to young minds. 

CHILD’S WORLD IN PICTURES 

By Clotilde von Wyss. 

With 32 full-page illustrations in color 
and 30 in black and white. 

Dec. boards, 12 mo, $.75 net; by mail $.85. 

Story-like descriptions, illustrated by pictures of 
life in far-away and unknown lands, certain to appeal 
to a child’s vivid imagination. 

CHILDREN’S BOOK OF STARS 

By G. E. Mitton. 

With 11 full-page illustrations in color 
and other illustrations. 

Dec. cloth, 8vo, $ 2 .00 net ; by mail $2.15. 

A capital introduction to astronomy written in a 
most pleasing manner for children’s comprehension 
and interest and well illustrated. 

CHILDREN’S BOOK OF GARDENING 

Mrs. Alfred Sidgwick and Mrs. Payn- 
ter. 

With 12 full-page illustrations in color 
by Mrs. Cayley-Robinson. 

Dec. cloth, i2mo,$2.oo net; by mail $2.15. 

Tells the juvenile reader how to make his garden 
grow. It is written from a child’s point of view and 
supplies the information a child can use. 

CHILDREN’S BOOK OF CELTIC 
STORIES 

By Elizabeth W. Grierson. 

With 12 full-page illustrations in color 
by Allan Stewart. 

Dec. cloth, 8 vo, $ 2.00 net; by mail $2.15. 

A collection of stories, some of them strange and 
weird, but quite as fascinating as any of the better 
known fairy tales. They are retold in words as near 
the original as possible. 


CHILDREN’S TALES FROM SCOT- 
TISH BALLADS 

By Elizabeth W. Grierson. 

With 12 full-page illustrations in color 
by Allan Stewart. 

Dec. cloth, 8vo, $ 2.00 net ; by mail $2.15. 

Seventeen of the most famous Scottish ballads re- 
told in simple English for children. 

CHILDREN’S TALES OF ENGLISH 
MINSTERS 

By Elizabeth W. Grierson. 

With 12 full-page illustrations in color 
by various artists. 

Dec. cloth, 8vo, $2:00 net ; by mail, $2.15. 
Also separately: Canterbury, Durham, Ely, 
Lincoln, St. Albans, St. Paul’s, York. Each 
with a colored illustration, 50 cents net ; by 
mail 55 cents. 

Stories of saints, monarchs, statesmen and warriors 
connected with the founding of ten of the best known 
English cathedrals. 

CHILDREN’S BOOK OF LONDON 

By G. E. Mitton. 

With 12 full-page illustrations in color 
by John Williamson. 

Dec. cloth, 8vo, $2.00 net ; by mail $2.15. 

“ A book as thoroughly charming as it is variously 
instructive . . . fitted to kindle in the imagination 
of a child a lively sense of what great London is, as 
also of what it has been .” — Chicago Tribune. 

CHILDREN’S BOOK OF EDINBURGH 

By Elizabeth W. Grierson. 

With 12 full-page illustrations in color 
by Allan Stewart. 

Dec. cloth, 1 2mo, $2.00 net; bymail$2.i5. 

In simple language Miss Grierson writes about the 
modern interests of the city. 

THE BOOK OF THE RAILWAY 

By G. E. Mitton. 

With 12 full-page illustrations in color 
by Allan Stewart. 

Dec. cloth, 8vo, $2.00 ; by mail $2.15. 

There is nothing technical in it; it is written so 
clearly that a young child can understand it and yet 
grown up children will find a great deal that is en- 
tirely new to them. 


ocr 5 19H 


THE ADVENTURES OF PUNCH 

By Ascott R. Hope. 

With 12 full-page illustrations in color 
by Stephen Baghot De La Bere. 
Dec.cloth, i2mo, $2.00 net; by mail $2.15. 

A book full of thrilling experiences and illustrated 
with lively color pictures. It will hold the attention 
of boy or girl from the first to the last word. 

THE PILGRIM’S PROGRESS 

By John Bunyan. 

With 8 full-page illustrations in cplor 
by Gertrude D. Hammond. 

Dec.cloth, 1 2 mo, $2.00 net; by mail $2.15. 

This great allegory illustrated with pictures which 
are remarkable for the manner in which they portray 
the spirit of Bunyan’s famous text. 

WILLIAM TELL TOLD AGAIN 

By P. G. Wodehouse. 

With 16 full-page illustrations in color 
by Philip Dadd. 

Dec.cloth, i2mo, $2.00 net; by mail $2.15. 

Accompanying the prose story and supplementing 
the pictures are delightfully humorous verses reveal- 
ing a lighter side to the story. 

THE ADVENTURES OF DON QUIXOTE 

By Miguel De Cervantes. 

Translated and abridged by Dominick 
Daly. 

With 12 full-page illustrations in color 
by Stephen Baghot De La Bere. 
Dec.cloth, i2mo, $2.00 net; by mail $2.15. 

A selection of the more interesting and amusing 
parts of Cervantes’ great composition. 

THE KING WHO NEVER DIED 

By Dorothy Senior. 

With 12 full-page illustrations in color. 
Dec. cloth, i2mo, $1.50. 

BEASTS AND BIRDS 

By Clotilde von Wyss. 

With 55 illustrations, of which 31 are 
in color. 

Dec. boards, 8vo, 75 cents net. 

A nature book for boys and girls. 


RED CAP ADVENTURES 

By S. R. Crockett. 

With 16 full-page illustrations in color 
by Allan Stewart. 

Dec. cloth, i2mo, $1.75. 

A collection of nineteen stories founded upon Sir 
Walter Scott’s “ Ivanhoe,” “Fortunes of Nigel,” 
“ Quentin Durward,” and “ The Pirate.” 

RED CAP TALES 

By S. R. Crockett. 

With 16 full-page illustrations in color 
by Allan Stewart. 

Dec.cloth, i2mo, $2.00 net; by mail $ 2 . 20 . 

Here Mr. Crockett adapts “ Waverley,” “ Rob Roy,” 
“Guy Mannering,” and “The Antiquary” for the 
benefit of young readers. 

ADVENTURES IN MANY LANDS 
NORTH AMERICA 

By Ascott R. Hope. 

With 12 full-page illustrations in color 
by Henry Sandham. 

Dec. cloth, 1 2 mo, $1.75. 

A collection of personal narratives of adventure, 
remarkable not only for their own interest, but be- 
cause they represent notable phases of American life. 

THE BULL OF THE KRAAL 

By Dudley Kidd. 

With 12 full-page illustrations in color 
by A. M. Goodall. 

Dec. cloth, i2mo, $ 2.00 net; by mail $2.15. 

A story of the exciting adventures of a delightful 
little Kafir Prince and a number of his small, black 
friends. 

GOD’S LANTERN BEARERS 

By Rev. R. C. Gillie. 

With 32 full-page illustrations in black 
and white by John Sargent and others. 
Dec. cloth, 8vo, $2.00 net ; by mail $2.15. 

A retelling of certain Bible stories in the language 
of children, each illustrated by photogravures of ideal 
portraits. The lantern bearers are holy men who, in 
each age, passed on the light of heavenly truth to 
those beyond them. 


THE MACMILLAN COMPANY, PUBLISHERS, NEW YORK 








































































































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